ANTIDEMENTIA MEDICATION USE IS ASSOCIATED WITH DECREASED INFORMAL COSTS IN MILD DEMENTIA

Abstract

Antidementia medication use (ADMU) is associated with a delay in the progression of dementia symptoms, but their association with informal costs of dementia care has not been well-studied. Using the Cache County Dementia Progression Study, a population-based sample of persons with dementia (PWD), we examined daily caregiving hours for 219 PWD (46.9% female, mean (SD) age = 85.8 (5.0) years), which were estimated from the Caregiver Activity Survey. Informal costs were then calculated using the replacement cost method by multiplying hours of care by Utahan median wages in the visit year. Cost was adjusted for inflation using the Medical Consumer Price Index and expressed in 2015 dollars. ADMU was based on inspection of each participant’s medications and interview. Linear mixed models, with gamma log-link function, tested the association between antidementia medications and informal costs. Covariates included: psychotropic and anticholinergic medication use, participant’s health status, gender, and dementia severity (measured by the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale-Sum of Boxes). ADMU was 30.7% at baseline and median informal costs were $9.95/day. Overall, ADMU was not associated with informal costs (expβ = .79, p = .090) in the entire sample. In analyses restricted to participants with mild dementia severity at baseline, ADMU was associated with 28% lower costs (expβ = .72, p = .039). Among covariates, only dementia severity (time-varying) was significantly associated with informal costs. These results suggest that ADMU is associated with lower informal costs, particularly among PWD using these medications while in mild stages of dementia severity.