Risk increased with increasing baclofen dosages.
Case reports of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) developing encephalopathy while taking baclofen prompted Canadian investigators to conduct this retrospective case-control study of almost 16,000 older adults (mean age, 77) with CKD (estimated glomerular filtration rate, <60 mL/minute/1.73 m2) who were new users of baclofen.
Thirty-day hospitalization rates for encephalopathy were 1.1% among baclofen users who took ≥20 mg/day, 0.4% among baclofen users who took <20 mg/day, 0.06% among 284,000 similar patients who didn't take baclofen.
Reviewing Author
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Comment
This retrospective unadjusted analysis is essentially a large case series. Although the researchers weren't trying to compare risks and benefits of…