Back to Search
Start Over
Actual versus reported benzodiazepine usage by medical outpatients
- Source :
- European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 32:383-388
- Publication Year :
- 1987
- Publisher :
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 1987.
-
Abstract
- Benzodiazepines are widely prescribed, and in 1979 almost 10% of the adult population was taking them. Prior studies of outpatient usage of benzodiazepines have relied on survey or prescription data, which may be confounded by noncompliance. To determine the actual use of benzodiazepines, plasma benzodiazepine concentrations were measured in 225 consecutive outpatients from a university cardiology outpatient service. Self reports indicated that the great majority of the patients (191) were taking at least one medicine, and 70 reported being on a psychotropic drug. Seventy-seven patients reported taking benzodiazepines, the majority being on bromazepam (20), diazepam (26) or oxazepam (19). In 25 of those 77 patients, the reported drug could not be detected in plasma. Conversely, in 10 of the 225 patients, benzodiazepines which were not reported were detected (diazepam or flurazepam). Of those taking benzodiazepines, many had a low concentration, suggesting intermittent rather than regular use. Thus, many patients for whom benzodiazepines are prescribed take them irregularly, and a small group uses them without reporting their prescription. These findings have implications for the clinical presentation of illness and for the possibility of drug interactions.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Adolescent
Flurazepam
medicine.drug_class
Benzodiazepines
Surveys and Questionnaires
Outpatients
Pharmacovigilance
medicine
Humans
Pharmacology (medical)
Medical prescription
Psychiatry
Aged
Pharmacology
Bromazepam
Benzodiazepine
business.industry
General Medicine
Middle Aged
Psychotropic drug
Anti-Anxiety Agents
Oxazepam
Emergency medicine
Patient Compliance
Female
business
Diazepam
medicine.drug
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14321041 and 00316970
- Volume :
- 32
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....d19c01b264c8f200004bccfc1509555b