Antihypertensive and Statin Medication Use and Motor Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Objectives: To investigate whether the use of antihypertensive and statin medication in very old adults is associated with the level of motor performance. Design: Cross-sectional study. Settings: A community-based study recruited from over 40 residential facilities across the metropolitan Chicago area. Participants: Community-dwelling very old adults (n = 1520; mean age 80.2; standard deviation 7.7). Measurements: Eleven motor performances were summarized using a composite motor score. All prescription and over the counter medications taken by participants were inspected and coded using the Medi-Span Data Base System. Demographic characteristics and medical history were obtained by means of detailed interview and medical examinations. Results: In multiple linear regression models, antihypertensive medications were associated with global motor score [β = -0.075, standard error (SE) 0.011, P < .001]. Thus, motor function in an individual with antihypertensive medication, was on average, about 7.5% lower than an age-, sex-, and education-matched individual without antihypertensive medication. The number of antihypertensive medications, which were being used had an additive effect, such that a reduction in the level of motor function was observed with each additional medication, and receiving 3 or more antihypertensive medications was associated with about a 15% reduction in the level of motor function. The association between antihypertensive medications and motor function was robust, and remained unchanged after adjusting for confounding by indication using several potentially confounding variables: smoking, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction, and intermittent claudication (β = -0.05, SE 0.015, P = .001). In contrast, the use of statin medications was not related to motor function (unadjusted: β = 0.003, SE 0.015, P = .826; fully adjusted: β = 0.018, SE 0.014, P = .216). Conclusions: The use of antihypertensive medications is associated with a lower level of motor function in very old adults. The nature of this association warrants further investigation.