ArticleJournal of the American Geriatrics Society2026
Anticholinergic Medication Use in Veterans Affairs Long-Term Care Residents: Clinical Patterns and Opportunities for Deprescribing.
Article in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Anticholinergic Medication Use in Veterans Affairs Long-Term Care Residents: Clinical Patterns and Opportunities for Deprescribing.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAnticholinergic exposure is common in nursing homes; however, the true burden may be underestimated, particularly due to over-the-counter agents such as first-generation antihistamines that are not consistently captured in prior claims-based studies. This gap limits accurate characterization of anticholinergic use and its clinical implications in older adults. PARTICIPANTS AND
settingVeterans aged ≥ 65 years with stays ≥ 90 days (N = 45,183) residing in US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Community Living Centers (CLC). This study is a secondary data analysis of residents identified during fiscal years 2007-2019.
methodsTrue anticholinergic exposure through barcode-based medication administration dispensing records allowed daily measurement of anticholinergic exposure, with follow-up extending from admission to discharge, death, or April 1, 2025. Anticholinergic medication use was defined as use ≥ 4 days per week during the CLC stay. Drugs were identified using VA classifications aligned with the 2023 American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria and grouped into nine anticholinergic classes. Outcomes included prevalence, duration, and number of anticholinergic drug classes used; patterns by dementia status; and temporal trends over time.
resultsAmong 45,183 CLC residents, 33.4% (n = 15,074) used anticholinergic medications. Residents with dementia (n = 20,254) showed substantial exposure to neuropsychiatric anticholinergics, including second-generation antipsychotics (30.6%) and antiparkinsonian agents (10.1%). First-generation antihistamine use remained high in this group (29.5%). Residents without dementia (n = 24,929) more frequently received antihistamines (34.4%), bladder antimuscarinics (23.7%), and skeletal muscle relaxants (11.1%). From FY2007-2019, anticholinergic use declined modestly, with decreases in antihistamines (12.1%-8.8%), antidepressants (6.8%-3.5%), and antiemetic/antivertigo agents (5.2%-1.2%). Most residents used a single anticholinergic class, increasing from 75.5% to 82.2% over time.
conclusionsAlthough some anticholinergic classes may be clinically necessary, our findings highlight potentially underrecognized and modifiable sources of exposure, particularly first-generation antihistamines, underscoring the need for deprescribing efforts.
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