From: judgeparker23x@gmail.com   
      
   Benzodiazepine Drugs Tied To Increased Risk of Dementia (Valium, Ativan,   
   Klonopin, and Xanax)   
      
   *****   
      
      
   Psych Central    
      
   Benzodiazepine Drugs Tied To Increased Risk of Dementia By Rick Nauert PhD    
   ~ 1 min read    
   Benzodiazepine Drugs Tied To Increased Risk of Dementia    
      
   New research suggests the practice of using benzodiazepines to treat   
   psychiatric conditions should be abandoned as evidence suggests the drugs   
   heighten the risk for dementia and death.    
      
   Benzodiazepines include branded prescription drugs like Valium, Ativan,   
   Klonopin, and Xanax. This class of drug received FDA approval in the 1960s and   
   was believed to be a safer alternative to barbiturates.    
      
      
   Despite new psychiatric protocols, some physicians continue to prescribe   
   benzodiazepines as a primary treatment for insomnia, anxiety, post-traumatic   
   stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and other ailments.    
      
   "Current research is extremely clear and physicians need to partner with their   
   patients to move them into therapies, like antidepressants, that are proven to   
   be safer and more effective," said Helene Alphonso, DO, a board-certified   
   psychiatrist and    
   Director of Osteopathic Medical Education at North Texas University Health   
   Science Center.    
      
   "Due to a shortage of mental health professionals in rural and underserved   
   areas, we see primary care physicians using this class of drugs to give relief   
   to their patients with psychiatric symptoms. While compassionate, it's   
   important to understand that    
   a better long-term strategy is needed."    
      
   Alphonso will review current treatment protocols, outpatient benzodiazepine   
   detox strategies, and alternative anxiety treatments at OMED 15, to be held   
   October 17-21 in Orlando. OMED is the annual medical education conference of   
   the American Osteopathic    
   Association.    
      
   A Canadian review of 9,000 patients found those who had taken a benzodiazepine   
   for three months or less had about the same dementia risk as those who had   
   never taken one. Taking the drug for three to six months raised the risk of   
   developing Alzheimer's    
   disease by 32 percent, and taking it for more than six months boosted the risk   
   by 84 percent. Similar results were found by French researchers studying more   
   than 1,000 elderly patients.    
      
   Experts say the case for limiting the use of benzodiazepines is particularly   
   compelling for patients 65 and older, who are more susceptible to falls,   
   injuries, accidental overdose, and death when taking the drugs. The American   
   Geriatric Society in 2012    
   labeled the drugs "inappropriate" for treating insomnia, agitation, or   
   delirium because of those risks.    
      
      
   "It's imperative to transition older patients because we're seeing a very   
   strong correlation between use of benzodiazepines and development of   
   Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. While correlation certainly isn't   
   causation, there's ample reason to    
   avoid this class of drugs as a first-line therapy," Alphonso said.    
      
   Source: American Osteopathic Association/EurekAlert    
        
   Brain and pills photo by shutterstock.    
      
      
   http://psychcentral.com/news/2015/10/06/revisit-use-of-benzodiaz   
   pines-for-mental-health-conditions/93165.html   
      
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