Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36217261›Full record

ArticleDrug and alcohol review2023

Trends and patterns of benzodiazepines and Z-drugs prescriptions in Australian general practice: A national study (2011-2018).

David Gonzalez-Chica, Mumtaz Begum, Carla Bernardo, Elizabeth Hoon, Alexander Sweetman, Nigel Stocks

Open access · hybridAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Drug and alcohol review, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.0field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Insomnia and the question of psychomotor agitation as a possible cause for zolpidem abuse.Jornal brasileiro de pneumologia : publicacao oficial da Sociedade Brasileira de Pneumologia e Tisilogia · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

David Gonzalez-ChicaDiscipline of General Practice, Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-7153-2878
Mumtaz BegumDiscipline of General Practice, Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-6302-3697
Carla BernardoDiscipline of General Practice, Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-6998-6419
Elizabeth HoonDiscipline of General Practice, Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-7077-7902
Alexander SweetmanAdelaide Rural Clinical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-7900-1414
Nigel StocksDiscipline of General Practice, Adelaide Medical School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-9018-0361
The University of Adelaide · AUFlinders University · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionWe aimed to explore trends and sociodemographic patterns in benzodiazepine (BZD) (by half-life) and Z-drugs prescribing in Australian general practice.

methodsThis open cohort study used de-identified electronic health records of 1.4 million patients (50,812,413 consultations) from 402 Australian practices (MedicineInsight 2011-2018). Annual prescribing frequency and changes over time were estimated according to sex, age, socioeconomic position and rurality.

resultsBetween 2011 and 2018, the prescribing of very short-acting BZD increased from 0.10 to 0.29 per 1000 consultations (average annual change +17.2% [95% CI 9.6; 25.3]), while it declined for short-intermediate (from 38.5 to 26.6 per 1000 consultations; annual change -5.1% [95% CI -5.6; -4.5]), long-acting BZD (from 24.1 to 21.6 per 1000 consultation; annual change -1.5% [95% CI -2.2; -0.8]) and Z-drugs (from 4.6 to 4.0 per 1000 consultations; annual change -1.9% [95% CI -3.0; -0.7]). Short-intermediate-acting BZD prescribing was three times more frequent among women aged 65+ years than younger women, and long-acting BZD three-to-four times more likely among younger than older men. Z-drugs prescribing was higher among women aged 45-64 years than younger or older females. Short-intermediate- and long-acting BZD were more likely prescribed for patients from more disadvantaged areas, and Z-drugs in more advantaged areas. There were no disparities by rurality. DISCUSSION AND

conclusionsAlthough most BZD and Z-drugs prescriptions declined over time, short-intermediate BZD prescriptions remained higher among older women and long-acting BZD more frequent among younger men, especially for those living in more disadvantaged areas. Targeted interventions could reduce the prescribing of BZD and Z-drugs in these groups.

Indexed as

BenzodiazepinesGeneral PracticeAgedAustraliaCohort StudiesDrug PrescriptionsFemaleHumansMalePractice Patterns, Physicians'Benzodiazepinesanxiolyticsbenzodiazepineselectronic health recordsgeneral practicehypnotics

Identifiers

PMID36217261
PMCPMC10092554
OpenAlexW4304163323

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.