"Physicians should...be cognizant of the legal liability risk associated with in

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/836748

 

I've posted this before - just wanted to highlight the legal liability part - has been starting to show up, (actually has been for years, but much more recently) in the med journals .

Thank you for that link! I'm really glad that this is a very recent article. For awhile it seemed that there were many studies from a long time ago but not much within the past year. Hopefully more recent studies will begin showing up frequently. 

I'm unable to view the article. I'd have to sign in. Is there another way to view it?

Sometimes it works, sometimes not - here's a piece of text - just search the whole thing. I've gotten about 8 benzo articles on my Google alert in the past couple of days !! Some duplicates picked up by different publications, but that's great! Progress!

 

 

Despite inherent risks and questionable efficacy, long-term use of the benzodiazepines steadily increases with age among US residents, and their use is especially prevalent among older women, new research shows.

 

Investigators led by Mark Olfson, MD, MPH, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, New York City, report that in 2008, 5.2% of US adults aged 18 to 80 years used benzodiazepines.

Thanks, Qui. It's interesting to note that a benzo article written by an American doctor will mention -- or even frame the title around -- the issue of legal liability. The focus should be the damage to the patient, shouldn't it?!

 

I agree, though, that the more the info gets out there, the better. Personally, I would like to see some action on both prevention of further cases and on helping those affected by these over-prescribed medications. People are suffering as a result of the withdrawal symptoms, and that's a medical issue. It's iatrogenic. There is a responsibility to help and to do no further harm.