Adherence to Medication Regimens is an Effective Indicator of Cognitive Dysfunction in Elderly Individuals

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Cognitive abilities strongly influence medication adherence among elderly individuals. We aimed to evaluate the relationship between medication adherence and cognitive decline using Lawton's instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) scoring system and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). METHODS: Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the IADL scores and MMSE results. RESULTS: The ROC curve analysis of the IADL and MMSE results revealed that the shopping (MMSE cutoff = 22 points, sensitivity = 0.726, and specificity = 0.683) and responsibility for own medications (MMSE cutoff = 22 points, sensitivity = 0.759, and specificity = 0.720) categories were associated with declining IADL scores during early stage cognitive dysfunction. CONCLUSION: Declining IADL scores in the shopping and responsibility for own medications categories may be effective indices for predicting early-stage cognitive dysfunction in elderly individuals. Cognitive dysfunction screening at pharmacy counters may be useful.