| Title |
Prescription patterns of benzodiazepines in the Lebanese adult population: a cross-sectional study
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, September 2016
|
| DOI | 10.2147/ndt.s113078 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Wijdan H Ramadan, Ghada M El Khoury, Mary E Deeb, Marwan Sheikh-Taha |
| Abstract |
This study assessed the profile of benzodiazepine (BDZ) users in Lebanon. Adult patients visiting the pharmacies with prescriptions of BDZs were included in the study. Seven hundred and eighty-six current BDZ users were included, of whom 54.2% were females. Twenty-three percent reported being alcohol consumers and were mostly males. The two most commonly used BDZs were alprazolam (34.6%) and bromazepam (33.6%). The indication for use was mainly anxiety (44.4%), insomnia (22.5%), and depression (15.9%). The prescribing physicians were primarily psychiatrists (43.2%), followed by general practitioners (29.7%). Forty percent had been taking the drug for more than a year. Among those using BDZs for at least 1 month, 35.5% increased the dose with time. Thirty-three percent reported having experienced side effects. Eighteen patients (2.3%) reported taking more than one BDZ concomitantly, while 18.3% were taking drugs that should not be prescribed along with BDZs. In conclusion, the use of BDZs is highest among females, especially for the treatment of anxiety. Moreover, continuous use of the drugs for more than a year as well as significant potential drug interactions was identified. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 2 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 2 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 2 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 31 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 31 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Bachelor | 6 | 19% |
| Student > Master | 5 | 16% |
| Student > Postgraduate | 3 | 10% |
| Researcher | 3 | 10% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 2 | 6% |
| Other | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 11 | 35% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 8 | 26% |
| Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science | 5 | 16% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 1 | 3% |
| Environmental Science | 1 | 3% |
| Social Sciences | 1 | 3% |
| Other | 3 | 10% |
| Unknown | 12 | 39% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 07 September 2016.
All research outputs
#17,283,763
of 25,371,288 outputs
Outputs from Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
#1,901
of 3,132 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#228,247
of 348,359 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
#68
of 104 outputs
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