Medicines Safety Update Volume 4, Number 3, June 2013 Medicines Safety Update is the medicines safety bulletin of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) Anticholinergics and cognitive impairment Health professionals should be aware that anticholinergic drugs may cause cognitive impairment in older patients when used long term. Health professionals are encouraged to use SARA, along with other resources on the TGA website, such as the Database of Adverse Event Notifications and the alerts webpage, to access valuable information on medicine safety. Clinical studies have demonstrated a trend towards increased risk of myocardial infarction in patients taking dabigatran compared with warfarin, but the significance of this is uncertain. Clinical guidelines are available to assist health professionals manage the actively bleeding patient – see www.health.qld.gov.au/qhcss/mapsu/documents/dabigatran_info.pdf New information about drug–drug interactions added to PI The use of dronedarone has been added to the list of contraindications with dabigatran after a pharmacokinetic study showed a 2.4 fold increase in exposure to dabigatran when it is taken with dronedarone....

Medicines Safety Update