Anticholinergic burden for prediction of cognitive decline or neuropsychiatric symptoms in older adults with mild cognitive impairment or dementia (Protocol)

Objectives: This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (prognosis). The objectives are as follows:. Primary objective. To assess whether anticholinergic burden, as defined at the level of each individual scale, is a prognostic factor for further cognitive decline or neuropsychiatric disturbances in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia. Secondary objective. To compare the prognostic validity of different anticholinergic burden scales. To examine the effect of type of dementia and severity of dementia on the association between anticholinergic burden and rate of cognitive decline or neuropsychiatric disturbances. To examine the effect of setting (care home versus non-care home) on the association between anticholinergic burden and rate of cognitive decline or neuropsychiatric disturbances. To examine whether anticholinergic burden is a prognostic factor for other clinical outcomes in people with MCI or dementia.