ReviewDeutsches Arzteblatt international2015
The problems of long-term treatment with benzodiazepines and related substances.
Review in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 114 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy and safety of lemborexant in adults with insomnia: comparing Japanese and non-Japanese subgroups from the global, phase 3, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled SUNRISE 2 study.Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine · 2021Trial
- Longer Duration of Drug Elimination and Withdrawal Symptoms in Overweight Patients Undergoing Detoxification for Benzodiazepine Dependence.Alpha psychiatry · 2026Article
- Increased NMDAR activity and GluN2A-NMDAR silent synapse expansion induced by chronic benzodiazepine treatment.Neuropharmacology · 2025Article
- Medication patterns and potentially inappropriate medication in patients with metastatic breast cancer: results of the BRE-BY-MED study.BMC cancer · 2025Article
- Chronic benzodiazepine treatment triggers gephyrin scaffold destabilization and GABAFrontiers in cellular neuroscience · 2025Article
- Anxiolytic and sedative effects of sodium valproate with different experimental paradigms in male and female rats.Neuropsychopharmacology reports · 2024Article
- Polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate prescribing of benzodiazepines in older nursing home residents.Annals of medicine · 2024Article
- [Private Prescriptions In East And West Germany - A Secondary Data Analysis].Gesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany)) · 2023Article
- Relationship between GABA-Ergic System and the Expression of Mephedrone-Induced Reward in Rats-Behavioral, Chromatographic and In Vivo Imaging Study.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Implementing Blended Care to Discontinue Benzodiazepine Receptor Agonist Use for Insomnia: Process Evaluation of a Pragmatic Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR formative research · 2023Article
- Enduring neurological sequelae of benzodiazepine use: an Internet survey.Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology · 2023Article
- Long-term use of benzodiazepines in chronic insomnia: a European perspective.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Article
- Benzodiazepines in Patients with Heart Failure and Reduced Ejection Fraction.Acta Cardiologica Sinica · 2022Article
- The Characteristics of Benzodiazepine Prescribing in the Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Article
- Addiction of High Dose of Benzodiazepine: Verona Detox Approach With Flumazenil.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
- Study protocol-Evoked craving in high-dose benzodiazepine users.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
- Evolution of benzodiazepine receptor agonist prescriptions in general practice: A registry-based study.Frontiers in public health · 2022Article
- Short- and Long-Term Influences of Benzodiazepine and Z-Drug Use in Patients with Bipolar Disorder Combined Sleep Disturbance during Affective Period: A Nine-Month Follow-Up Analysis.Disease markers · 2022Article
- Benzodiazepine high-doses: The need for an accurate definition.International journal of methods in psychiatric research · 2021Review
- Internet Survey of Japanese Patients With Chronic Constipation: Focus on Correlations Between Sleep Quality, Symptom Severity, and Quality of Life.Journal of neurogastroenterology and motility · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundBenzodiazepine abuse and dependence have been recognized and widely discussed for more than 40 years. With more than 230 million daily doses prescribed in Germany per year, the burden of reimbursement on the statutory health insurance carriers is high, albeit with a slight decline from year to year. At present, about 50% of all prescriptions in Germany are issued privately, even for patients who have statutory health insurance.
methodsWe selectively review the literature on the epidemiology and treatment of benzodiazepine dependence and abuse in Germany.
resultsEstimates of the number of benzodiazepine-dependent persons in Germany range from 128 000 to 1.6 million. Most estimates take no account of the large number of private prescriptions (i.e., those that are not reimbursed by the statutory health insurance scheme), while many exclude prescriptions for elderly persons, for whom these drugs are frequently prescribed. For the outpatient treatment of benzodiazepine withdrawal, it is recommended that the drug should first be switched to an equivalent dose of another benzodiazepine with an intermediate or long-acting effect; the dose should then, in general, be reduced weekly. In case of consumption of a high dose (≥ 20 mg diazepam equivalent), hospitalization and the additional administration of carbamazepine or valproic acid are recommended. Flumazenil treatment can improve with - drawal symptoms and leads to higher abstinence rates. Antidepressants should be given only if the patient is depressed. The dependence potential of nonbenzodiazepine drugs such as zolpidem and zopiclon must also be borne in mind.
conclusionBenzodiazepines are generally highly effective when first given, but they should generally be given only for strict indications and for a limited time. If these drugs still need to be given beyond the short term, timely referral to a specialist is indicated, and possibly also contact with the addiction aid system.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.