Can Fentanyl patches cause dementia

Answer 1

Fentanyl usage has to be viewed in the proper context - if patches are being used, then the physical pain is considered to be worse than the loss of cognitive function. It isn't prescribed lightly.

Fentanyl can affect a person's cognitive ability, but not that fast. Fentanyl isn't used as a first-time pain medication, only on those who are already tolerant to opiates, so the patient is already tolerant to the overall effects of opiates on their system.

Fentanyl, like most opiates, alters the brain's perception of pain, and can also cause confusion if the dose is too high, or dosage regulation is increased due to increased heart rate or body temperature, which will cause the same effect. There are other things that are typically attributed to dementia that doctors often miss that can affect memory and cognitive function as well. Being hypothyroid (not enough thyroid hormone output) is common in elderly patients, and often written off as dementia or senility. My own grandfather was initially diagnosed this way, until I told my Mom to have them run a thyroid level check on him (it's not normally performed as part of a standard blood screen). Sure enough, it was too low. Low vitamin levels (particularly B-12) can also give the same symptoms of memory problems, and low D3 levels can cause muscle weakness.

My point is that we tend to notice symptoms that are recent rather than to analyze other possible causes for a problem. We're taught from the cradle to trust doctors at their word - if you read my Supervisor bio you'll find out why that's a bad mistake. Dementia and Senility are easy diagnoses, but not always the correct ones. So far I've had 4 friends and relatives misdiagnosed with symptoms of old age, when the real problem was either thyroid or vitamin related, or both.

Low thyroid levels are pretty easy to spot - I learned by seeing my wife after hers was removed many years ago and she had to be hypothyroid for several weeks before her first radiation treatment. I still see it now if she runs out or forgets to take her meds. The first indication is usually temperature regulation, either the person is too hot or too cold. Next is usually memory - the most common is for someone to tell you or ask you something, then repeat the same thing a few minutes later. Longer term, energy goes to pot, stamina, muscle weakness, breathing, etc. It's amazing how much such a little gland affects in our systems.

You can always adjust the dosage to a lower level to see if it helps, but I'd have them check Vitamin and Thyroid levels to be sure. However, having been through it with my own grandfather, in the end, if it's none of those, there's not much they can do.

Answer 2

Yes, they can; the effects of fentanyl and opiates in general are similar to dementia (e.g. confusion) if there's too much going into the body as a result of overheating. It's important to remember that the patches work by body heat activation, and any increase in activity can increase the dosage rate.