Ibuprofen and Risk of Alzheimer's Disease

Filed in archive Alzheimer's Disease , Studies on May 9, 2008

© Rev Dan Catt

According to a study published in the May 6, 2008, issue of Neurology® (the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology), long term use of ibuprofen and other drugs for aches and pain may be associated with reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

For the study, researchers identified 49,349 US veterans age 55 and older who developed Alzheimer's disease and 196,850 veterans without dementia. The study examined over five years of data and looked at the use of several non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). The veterans received medical care and prescriptions through the VA Health Care system.

The study found people who specifically used ibuprofen for more than five years were more than 40 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. Results also showed that the longer ibuprofen was used, the lower the risk for dementia. In addition, people who used certain types of NSAIDs for more than five years were 25 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease than non-users.

According to the study author Steven Vlad, MD, with Boston University School of Medicine:

While other NSAIDs such as indomethacin may also have been associated with lower risks, others such as celecoxib did not show any impact on dementia risk. These results suggest that the effect may be due to specific NSAIDs rather than all NSAIDs as a class.

Some of these medications taken long term decrease the risk of Alzheimer's disease, but it's very dependent on the exact drugs used. It doesn't appear that all NSAIDs decrease the risk at the same rate. One reason ibuprofen may have come out so far ahead is that it is by far the most commonly used."

But since this was an observational study, it cannot be interpreted as such entirely what's suggested - it might not be the NSAID use that drove the lower risk of dementia, but rather something else about the people who used a particular NSAID (ibuprofen, etc.).

Definitely, the findings above should not as used to administer NSAIDs to prevent dementia or Alzheimer's disease.

Find more details from the American Academy of Neurology or Science Daily.