Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39471357›Full record

Observational studyAmerican journal of health-system pharmacy : AJHP : official journal of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists2025

Characteristics of incident benzodiazepine recipients among US veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Komel N Shahid, Katherine Hadlandsmyth, Delaney R Brainerd, Brian C Lund

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in American journal of health-system pharmacy : AJHP : official journal of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

4 authors.

Komel N ShahidIowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Katherine HadlandsmythVA Office of Rural Health, Veterans Rural Health Resource Center-Iowa City (VRHRC-IC), Iowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Iowa City, IA.ORCID 0000-0003-0513-4609
Delaney R BrainerdIowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Brian C LundVA Office of Rural Health, Veterans Rural Health Resource Center-Iowa City (VRHRC-IC), Iowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Iowa City, IA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeWhile benzodiazepine prescribing among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) declined substantially in the Veterans Health Administration over the past decade, little is known about current incident prescribing. Our objective was therefore to describe patient, provider, facility, and prescribing characteristics among veterans with PTSD who were incident benzodiazepine recipients in 2022 and contrast these to the characteristics for incident recipients in 2012.

methodsThis retrospective observational study included all veterans with PTSD who received an incident benzodiazepine prescription during calendar year 2022 and separately for 2012. The distribution of patient, provider, facility, and benzodiazepine prescribing characteristics was contrasted between years. Stratified subanalyses were conducted by potential non-PTSD benzodiazepine indication, including anxiety and sleep disorders.

resultsA total of 28,310 (6.6%) incident benzodiazepine recipients were identified in 2012, which decreased to 16,776 (1.9%) incident recipients in 2022. The proportion of initial prescriptions written for a days' supply of 30 or more days decreased from 75.6% to 51.7%, and the proportion who received a second prescription within 6 months decreased from 68.7% to 53.5%. The proportion of patients with diagnoses for potential benzodiazepine indications also increased, including for generalized anxiety disorder (15.1% increase), obsessive compulsive disorders (0.6% increase), panic disorder (6.7% increase), and sleep disorders (22.9% increase).

conclusionAs incident benzodiazepine prescribing among veterans with PTSD decreased over the past decade, so did the volume of drug dispensed and duration of therapy, while the prevalence of documented prescriptions for non-PTSD indications increased.

Indexed as

BenzodiazepinesPractice Patterns, Physicians'Stress Disorders, Post-TraumaticVeteransAdultAgedDrug PrescriptionsFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedRetrospective StudiesUnited StatesUnited States Department of Veterans AffairsBenzodiazepinesbenzodiazepineposttraumatic stress disorderveteran

Identifiers

PMID39471357
PMCPMC11760524

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Registered trials

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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.