It is estimated that one person in five over 65 years of age is cognitively impaired to some degree.
Medications are among the most common causes of reversible confusional states in elderly people.
A recent study by Joseph T. Hanlon, Pharm. D., M.S., of the University of Minnesota, and colleagues shows that current benzodiazepine use is associated with decreased memory among community-dwelling elderly people. A second study by the same group reveals different patterns of medication use by community-dwelling elderly people that vary by level of cognitive function. Hanlon, J.T., Horner, R.D., Schmader, K.E., and others. Benzodiazepine use and cognitive function among community-dwelling elderly.