Milani, Sadaf Arefi and Raji, Mukaila A and Chen, Lu and Kuo, Yong-Fang (2021) Trends in the use of benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics, and serotonergic drugs among US women and men before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. JAMA Network Open, 4, (10), e2131012. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.31012.
External website: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/f...
Question: What are the changes in prescribing rates in men and women of benzodiazepines, Z-hypnotics, and serotonergic drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020 and 2021) compared with prior years (2018 and 2019)?
Findings: This cohort study of US adults (15.1 million to 17.3 million depending on the year studied) found an increase in Z-hypnotic and serotonergic drug prescriptions in both men and women along with an increase in benzodiazepine prescriptions in women at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meaning: These findings suggest a substantial association of COVID-19–associated social isolation, stay-at-home orders, and other COVID-related mitigation measures with mental health issues, especially among women.
B Substances > New (novel) psychoactive substances > Other novel substances > Zopiclone, eszopiclone, zaleplon and zolpidem
G Health and disease > Disease by cause (Aetiology) > Communicable / infectious disease > Viral disease / infection > Coronavirus (COVID-19)
J Health care, prevention, harm reduction and treatment > Risk and protective factors > Risk factors
L Social psychology and related concepts > Interpersonal interaction and group dynamics > Peer relations / social networks
L Social psychology and related concepts > Interpersonal interaction and group dynamics > Social support
T Demographic characteristics > Woman (women / female)
T Demographic characteristics > Man (men / male)
VA Geographic area > United States
Repository Staff Only: item control page