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Patterns and correlates of benzodiazepine use in the French general population

European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology volume 60, pages 523–529 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective

To investigate the prevalence of current use of benzodiazepines (BZDs) and related drugs in the French general population and factors associated with this use.

Methods

National cross-sectional telephone survey conducted between 25 April 2001 and 8 May 2001 in a representative sample of non-institutionalized adults of BZD use and duration, prescriber specialty, socio-demographic data and mood and anxiety disorders, using a structured diagnostic interview.

Results

The prevalence of current use of BZD was 7.5%. It was higher among women (9.7%) than men (5.2%). It increased with age and was higher in the jobless (10.9). Duration of BZD use was more than 6 months in 75.9% of users and increased with age. Of the 711 (17.7%) subjects with at least one mood or anxiety disorder, 122 (17%) used BZD compared with180 (5.5%) of the 3296 subjects without mood or anxiety disorders. In multivariate analysis, factors associated with BZD use were age [odds ratio (OR): 3.6; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.0–5.6], 6.5 (4.1–10.3) and 10.9 (6.9–17.1), respectively, for ages 35–44 years, 45–59 years and over 60 years compared with below 34 years, female gender (OR: 1.7; 95% CI 1.3–2.1), anxiety only (OR: 2.2; 95% CI 1.5–3.2), mood disorder only (OR: 4.4; 95% CI 2.7–7.1) or both mood and anxiety disorders (OR: 8.8; 95% CI 5.9–12.6).

Conclusion

Despite precautions, warnings and attempts to limit use, there remains a high proportion of long-term BZD users in the general French population, especially in the elderly. Our findings add to the weight of opinion that messages concerning proper use of BZDs certainly need to be clarified and amplified.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by an unconditional grant from Merck & Co., USA. The authors gratefully thank the subjects who agreed to participate in this study. This study was done in accordance with all the laws and regulations governing such studies in France. All data were collected anonymously.

Conflict of interest and authorship statement: none of the authors or their families have any direct financial ties with any of the producers of any of the drugs cited in this study, or with Merck & Co., or own any shares in any of these companies. Several of them (mainly NM, HV and BB) have been invited to give lectures by pharmaceutical companies in this and other fields and have consulted for most pharmaceutical companies in the field of psychopharmacology and other fields of pharmacology, the proceeds going to the university or to non-profit organizations. RL, BB, HV, NM are employees of Université Victor Segalen, Bordeaux; FD and AA are employees of Naturalia & Biologia, a non-profit organization. Their salaries are financed by research contracts with pharmaceutical companies and public organisms. AF was at the time of the study. an employee of ARME-Pharmacovigilance, a non-profit research organization funded by equal donations from eleven pharmaceutical companies and by grants from the French Ministry of Health to conduct fundamental research on methods in pharmacovigilance. NM, HV, AF and BB had the original idea, RL, HV and FD designed the study and the study material and organized the survey, AA, AF, FD and RL did the data analysis. The first draft of the paper was written by RL and reviewed by all authors, who approved the final draft. NM is the guarantor of the study.

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Affiliations

  1. Département de Pharmacologie, EA 3676, IFR 99, Université Victor Segalen, Bordeaux 2, 33076, Bordeaux cedex, France

    Rajaa Lagnaoui, Fanny Depont, Annie Fourrier, Abdelillah Abouelfath, Bernard Bégaud & Nicholas Moore

  2. ARME-Pharmacovigilance, 33076, Bordeaux, France

    Annie Fourrier

  3. Département de Psychiatrie Adulte, EA 3676, IFR 99, Université Victor Segalen, Bordeaux 2, Hôpital Charles Perrens, 33076, Bordeaux, France

    Hélène Verdoux

Authors
  1. Rajaa Lagnaoui
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  2. Fanny Depont
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  3. Annie Fourrier
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  4. Abdelillah Abouelfath
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  5. Bernard Bégaud
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  6. Hélène Verdoux
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  7. Nicholas Moore
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Correspondence to Nicholas Moore.

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Lagnaoui, R., Depont, F., Fourrier, A. et al. Patterns and correlates of benzodiazepine use in the French general population. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 60, 523–529 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-004-0808-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-004-0808-2

Keywords

  • Benzodiazepines drug utilization
  • Mood and anxiety disorders
  • General population survey