Anticholinergic drugs in older adults commonly cause which combination of symptoms?

Anticholinergic drugs in older adults commonly cause which combination of symptoms?

• A. Confusion, constipation, and urinary retention
• B. Nausea and vomiting
• C. Shortness of breath
• D. Headache

Answer: (A)

Anticholinergic drugs block acetylcholine at muscarinic receptors, reducing parasympathetic activity. In older adults, this can lead to central nervous system effects like confusion or delirium because the brain is particularly sensitive to cholinergic blockade. Peripherally, it slows gut motility, causing constipation, and it impairs bladder contraction, leading to urinary retention. When these effects occur together, the most characteristic combination is confusion, constipation, and urinary retention. Other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, or headache are less typical of the classic anticholinergic burden in the elderly.

Anticholinergic drugs block acetylcholine at muscarinic receptors, reducing parasympathetic activity. In older adults, this can lead to central nervous system effects like confusion or delirium because the brain is particularly sensitive to cholinergic blockade. Peripherally, it slows gut motility, causing constipation, and it impairs bladder contraction, leading to urinary retention. When these effects occur together, the most characteristic combination is confusion, constipation, and urinary retention. Other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, or headache are less typical of the classic anticholinergic burden in the elderly.