Overdose Deaths On The Rise In US With The Use Of Benzodiazepines

Overdose deaths have risen in recent years involving the benzodiazepines such as Valium and Xanax, according to study. Benzodiazepines are medications that are characterized with sedative properties and can treat medical conditions such as insomnia, depression and anxiety.

"Overdoses rose at a faster rate than prescriptions, suggesting that people were using benzodiazepines in a riskier way over time," Dr. Marcus Bachhuber, the lead author of the study and assistant professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

Fox News reports that the researchers found out that the prescription for benzodiazepines have been more than tripled and the fatal overdose have more than quadrupled in the past two decades -- quite alarming as noted by medical experts and specialists.

Other benzodiazepines such as Librium and Ativan are used to treat anxiety or depression. And the Klonopin treats seizures while Restoril and Serax for insomnia.

"Benzodiazepines have several known safety risks: in addition to overdose, they are conclusively linked to falls, fractures, motor vehicle accidents and can lead to misuse and addiction," Bachhuber said.

CNN reports a survey that showed the percentage of adults in the U.S. who gratified a benzodiazepine prescription increased about by 30 percent a year -- that is from 4.1 percent in 1996 to 5.6 percent in 2013. The amount of benzodiazepine medication in a prescription has been doubled over this period.

Bachhuber said that it is not apparent why there is a continued increased in the benzodiazepine prescription. In a study, scholars found out that anxiety was the common reason for medications that is about 56 percent of benzodiazepines prescriptions.

They also discovered that the overdose death rate associated with benzodiazepines prescriptions have been increased to more than quadruple between 199 and 2010 -- that is from 0.58 per 100,000 grown-ups to 3.07 per 100,000 grown-ups. The largest overdose death rates have increased among adults with age 18 to 64 years old.