Diazepam usage in veterans with spinal cord injury
| Autor: | Cynthia Radnitz, William A. Bauman, Charles P. Broderick |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 1997 |
| Předmět: |
medicine.medical_specialty
Baclofen medicine.drug_class Hospitals Veterans media_common.quotation_subject Medicine Humans Spasticity Medical prescription Practice Patterns Physicians' Veterans Affairs Spinal cord injury Spinal Cord Injuries media_common Veterans Benzodiazepine Diazepam business.industry Muscle Relaxants Central Addiction Data Collection medicine.disease Discontinuation Muscle Spasticity Physical therapy Neurology (clinical) medicine.symptom business medicine.drug |
| Zdroj: | The journal of spinal cord medicine. 20(4) |
| ISSN: | 1079-0268 |
| Popis: | Diazepam is widely prescribed for persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) to treat muscular spasticity. To assess the current usage of diazepam in those persons with SCI being followed by the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (DVAMCs), a survey was mailed to all 23 DVAMCs that have specialized SCI Services. We discovered that no policy regarding the prescription of benzodiazepines existed at 65 percent of the SCI Services. At 70 percent of the SCI Services, diazepam or another benzodiazepine was routinely prescribed. One-third of patients were estimated to have taken diazepam for greater than 10 years and an additional 37 percent for six to 10 years. Despite the potential for addiction, only 10 of the 23 SCI Services reported having a program to encourage discontinuation of diazepam use; a 20 percent success rate was reported in withdrawing this medication. A need for greater understanding with regard to the prescription of diazepam exists and strategies for its withdrawal should be considered. Appropriate guidelines for its use in patients with SCI and spasticity should be developed. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
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