Sedative medications used in intensive care are associated with increased delirium, which is in turn connected with higher medical costs and greater risk of death and ICU-related dementia.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers are enrolling adults aged 75 and over to study whether taking atorvastatin, a drug commonly used to lower cholesterol also called Lipitor®, can help maintain health by preventing dementia, disability, and heart disease.

Millions of patients in intensive care units each year develop delirium during their hospitalization and often leave the hospital with cognitive deficits similar to those suffering from traumatic brain injury or mild Alzheimer’s disease.

The cognitive impairment that affects patients who survive a stay in the ICU does not appear to have a similar mechanism to Alzheimer’s disease, Vanderbilt researchers have discovered.

Vanderbilt researchers will discuss their groundbreaking studies on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia at an upcoming forum, and the public is invited to attend.

The Vanderbilt Center for Quality Aging is taking the “bench to bedside” concept of translational research out into the community, forming partnerships with assisted living facilities to examine how evidence can be put into action to improve the care of elders.

A study of cognitive complaints in older adults showed that memory concerns from both the patient and an informant was most predictive of converting to Alzheimer’s disease or dementia within three years.