The study published in Ebiomedecine has shown that all these categories of drugs had increased the risk of death during the heat episode having struck British Columbia in 2021:
- Antepileptics
- Parkinson’s disease drugs
- Psycholeptics (calming)
- Diuretics
- Diabetes drugs
- Beta -blockers
- Analgesics
- Urological drugs
- drugs for the treatment of bone diseases
Conversely, these two categories of drugs seemed to have a protective effect:
- Calcic inhibitors
- Ophthalmological products
The team of Jérémie Boudreault, doctoral student at the National Institute of Scientific Research (INRS), studied around 500 deaths that occurred in the community, outside the health establishments, during the 2021 heat dome which left some 700 people. She compared them to just over 2,500 similar subjects that survived under the same conditions.
Researchers have looked into the impact of drugs prescribed for 21 chronic diseases, including chronic kidney disease, COPD or chronic obstructive bronchopneumopathy, depression, epilepsy, heart failure, schizophrenia and disorder linked to the use of psychoactive substances.
The study made it possible in particular to decide between the proportion of risk attributable to drugs and that associated with health problems. Study authors point out that the mechanisms that can increase the risk of death -related death during hot weather.
Some drugs will decrease the feeling of thirst or perspiration, while others will increase body temperature, which accentuates the risk of heat strokes at lower temperatures.
The study shows, for example, that:
- Antepileptics can cause sedation and cognitive disorders, which decreases vigilance and perception of heat;
- Parkinson drugs can increase body temperature and heat -related diseases, in addition to harm mobility;
- Psycholeptics alter perspiration and thermoregulation, as well as the body’s ability to maintain its temperature.
Regarding the apparent protective effect of certain drugs, the researchers explain that their users were possibly the subject of tighter medical follow -up. These molecules could also have a beneficial physiological effect in the face of heat.
Differences according to age and sex
The study notes that the effects of drugs vary according to age and sex.
- Diuretics have been identified as a significant risk factor in people aged 75 and over, but not among the youngest.
- Women had stronger effects with antiparkinsonians, beta -blockers and pain relievers.
- Urological drugs have a protective effect for men, but a significant risk factor for women.
Dangers and benefits
The authors warn that they did not compare the possible dangers of these medications during a heat wave in their health benefits of patients. They specify that this is an epidemiological study, and not clinical. In this sense, they are unable to provide evidence suggesting or justifying the modification or stopping a pharmaceutical treatment during an extreme heat event. In short, before thinking of putting your medication aside, it is better to consult your doctor.
Researchers believe, however, that their results are relevant in the context of global warming, while extreme heat events are multiplying. They think that this data can “provide precious information to doctors and pharmacists in order to better communicate with their patients about the risks linked to drugs during periods of high heat”.
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