Free Confidential Lawsuit Evaluation:If you or a loved one was diagnosed with dementia after taking Ditropan, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a lawsuit and we can help.
What is Ditropan?
Ditropan is a prescription anticholinergic drug that is used to treat symptoms of an overactive bladder (OAB), as well as bed-wetting in children (nocturnal enuresis). The medication comes as standard tablets for immediate release, or slow-release tablets (Ditropan XR), a liquid to swallow, or as patches.
How Does it Work?
Anticholinergic medications like Ditropan block bodily chemicals that affect muscle activity in the digestive and urinary tracts, lungs and other areas of the body. They also affect memory and learning.
Studies Link Ditropan to Dementia
A 2015 study published in JAMA Internal Medicine [1.] found that 54% of a cohort of 3,434 men and women over the age of 65 were more likely to develop dementia if they took anticholinergic medications compared to those who didn’t.
Specifically, the anticholinergics most closely linked to an increased risk for dementia included tricyclic antidepressants, first-generation antihistamines, and bladder medications like Ditropan.
“Higher cumulative anticholinergic use is associated with an increased risk for dementia,” the researchers concluded. “Efforts to increase awareness among health care professionals and older adults about this potential medication-related risk are important to minimize anticholinergic use over time.”
Another study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) [2.] in April 2018 found that elderly patients who took any anticholinergic-containing medications were 11% more likely to be diagnosed with dementia. Of those who used drugs with the most anticholinergic effects, the risk of dementia was 30% greater.
“A robust association between some classes of anticholinergic drugs and future dementia incidence was observed,” the study’s authors said. “Future research should examine anticholinergic drug classes as opposed to anticholinergic effects intrinsically or summing scales for anticholinergic exposure.”
What is Dementia?
Dementia is the loss of cognitive functioning — thinking, remembering, and reasoning — so severe that it interferes with an individual’s daily life and activities, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) [3.].
Some dementia patients are unable to control their emotions and their personalities change significantly. Dementia ranges in severity from mild, when the condition is just beginning to affect a person’s functioning, to severe, when the person is completely dependent on others for the basic activities of daily living, such as feeding oneself and going to the bathroom.
Dementia Symptoms
The symptoms of dementia result when neurons in the brain quit functioning normally, lose connections with other brain cells, and die. While some neuron loss is a normal part of the aging process, people with dementia experience far greater loss.
The signs and symptoms of dementia vary depending on the stage of the disease, but typically include:
- Experiencing memory loss, poor judgment, and confusion
- Difficulty speaking, understanding and expressing thoughts, or reading and writing
- Wandering and getting lost in a familiar neighborhood
- Trouble handling money responsibly and paying bills
- Repeating questions
- Using unusual words to refer to familiar objects
- Taking longer to complete normal daily tasks
- Losing interest in normal daily activities or events
- Hallucinating or experiencing delusions or paranoia
- Acting impulsively
- Not caring about other people’s feelings
- Losing balance and problems with movement
What is Overactive Bladder Syndrome (OAB)?
An overactive bladder occurs when a person regularly gets a sudden and compelling need or desire to pass urine. This sensation is difficult to put off and can happen at any time during the day or night, often without any warning.
Dementia Treatment
Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for dementia. However, there are medications and other treatments that can help manage symptoms of the disease.
Most of the drugs available are used to treat Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common form of dementia. These medicines include:
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors – Prevent an enzyme from breaking down a substance called acetylcholine in the brain, which helps nerve cells communicate with each other. Popular acetylcholinesterase inhibitors include Donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl).
Namenda (generic: memantine) – Prescribed to treat moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, and those with a combination of Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. Namenda works by blocking the effects of an excessive amount of a chemical in the brain called glutamate.
Do I Have a Ditropan Class Action Lawsuit?
The Class Action Litigation Group at our law firm is an experienced team of trial lawyers that focus on the representation of plaintiffs in Ditropan Lawsuits. We are handling individual litigation nationwide and currently accepting new dementia cases in all 50 states.
Free Case Evaluation: Again, if you or a loved one was diagnosed with dementia after taking Ditropan, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a suit and our lawyers can help.