ArticleBMC geriatrics2022
Prescription characteristics associated with fall-related injury risk among older adults prescribed benzodiazepines: a cohort study.
Article in BMC geriatrics, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 14 citations in OpenAlex.
- Response to commentary "Hypnotic-associated falls across the diurnal cycle: Pharmacokinetic signal or delirium rhythm?"Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences · 2026Article
- Prevalence of potentially inappropriate medication use and its association with hospitalization among older adults with chronic disease in the Amhara region, Ethiopia: a multicenter prospective cohort study.Therapeutic advances in drug safety · 2026Article
- Benzodiazepine (BZD) Use and Patient Safety: Opportunities for Community Pharmacy Involvement in the Management of Drug Interactions.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Dose trajectories associated with non-fatal overdose among patients co-prescribed opioids and benzodiazepines: Retrospective cohort study.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2025Article
- Influence of Ageing on the Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetics of Chronically Administered Medicines in Geriatric Patients: A Review.Clinical pharmacokinetics · 2025Review
- Association between Central Nervous System Drugs and Femoral Fracture Risk in Japanese Individuals ≥80 Years Old: A Case-crossover Study.Internal medicine (Tokyo, Japan) · 2025Article
- Association between Opioid-Benzodiazepine Trajectories and Injurious Fall Risk among US Medicare Beneficiaries.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Management of delirium in acute stroke patients: a position paper by the Austrian Stroke Society on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.Therapeutic advances in neurological disorders · 2024Review
- Secular Trends in Central Nervous System-Active Polypharmacy Among Serial Cross-Sections of US Adults, 2009-2020.Drugs & aging · 2023Article
- The use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers may relate to the survival and walking ability in geriatric patients with hip fractures: a 1-year follow-up study.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBenzodiazepines (BZD) are widely prescribed to older adults despite their association with increased fall injury. Our aim is to better characterize risk-elevating factors among those prescribed BZD.
methodsA retrospective cohort study using a 20% sample of Medicare beneficiaries with Part D prescription drug coverage. Patients with a BZD prescription ("index") between 1 April 2016 and 31 December 2017 contributed to incident (n=379,273) and continuing (n=509,634) cohorts based on prescriptions during a 6-month pre-index baseline. Exposures were index BZD average daily dose and days prescribed; baseline BZD medication possession ratio (MPR) (for the continuing cohort); and co-prescribed central nervous system-active medications. Outcome was a treated fall-related injury within 30 days post-index BZD, examined using Cox proportional hazards adjusting for demographic and clinical covariates and the dose prescribed.
resultsAmong incident and continuing cohorts, 0.9% and 0.7% experienced fall injury within 30 days of index. In both cohorts, injury risk was elevated immediately post-index among those prescribed the lowest quantity: e.g., for <14-day fill (ref: 14-30 days) in the incident cohort, risk was 37% higher the 10 days post-fill (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.37 [95% confidence interval [CI] 1.19-1.59]). Risk was elevated immediately post-index for continuing users with low baseline BZD exposure (e.g., for MPR <0.5 [ref: MPR 0.5-1], HR during days 1-10 was 1.23 [CI 1.08-1.39]). Concurrent antipsychotics and opioids were associated with elevated injury risk in both cohorts (e.g., incident HRs 1.21 [CI 1.03-1.40] and 1.22 [CI 1.07-1.40], respectively; continuing HRs 1.23 [1.10-1.37] and 1.21 [1.11-1.33]).
conclusionsLow baseline BZD exposure and a small index prescription were associated with higher fall injury risk immediately after a BZD fill. Concurrent exposure to antipsychotics and opioids were associated with elevated short-term risk for both incident and continuing cohorts.
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