The most overprescribed drugs that have have captured public interest are opioids. What a lot of people don’t know is that a 29% increase in pharmaceutical overdose deaths was caused by misuse of benzodiazepines, which have sedative properties. Dr. Steven King, MD, believes benzodiazepines are overprescribed, especially for patients with chronic pain. Benzodiazepines are often overlooked by the public, who claim to be either unaware or more interested in opioid abuse. Dr. King is taking a stand in order to prevent future overdoses.
Although frequently prescribed for those with chronic pain, benzodiazepines actually reduce analgesic effects when paired with opioids. Long term use of both drugs in tandem can lead to a lower pain threshold that would actually increase chronic pain.
Benzodiazepines are also extraordinarily addictive. They can be helpful for treating short term anxiety, but show few statistically significant positive results for those facing long term anxiety. In addition, anxiety is a disorder that is often comorbid with depression, and the symptoms of depression can be exacerbated by benzodiazepine use. Dr. King says it is safer to prescribe these patients SNRIs, a type of antidepressant, in order to avoid a magnification of depression symptoms.
Since this drug is a muscle relaxant and sedative, many doctors believe that Benzodiazepines are the go-to drug for patients with insomnia. On the contrary, Benzodiazepines actually interfere with the stages of sleep that cause insomnia and are not actually helpful in stabilizing the sleep cycle.
Before prescribing opioids, physicians are required to take Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Stategy programs (REMs). Dr. King believes that if physicians had to take the same measures before prescribing Benzodiazepines, we could greatly decrease the problems that come with overprescription of the drug. Dr. King stresses the importance of understanding both the positive and negative effects of different drugs on the market. No one is exactly the same, so reactions to different drugs may vary. Knowledge is power. With a greater wealth of information about drugs like benzodiazepines, the better we are able to properly medicate.
For more information on Benzodiazepines, check out Dr. King’s full article at this website.