Benzodiazepine and sedative use/abuse by methadone maintenance clients☆
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Cited by (135)
The impact of benzodiazepine exposure on treatment retention in an open-access methadone program: A retrospective cohort study
2022, Drug and Alcohol DependenceLack of effect of the combination of metyrapone and oxazepam on brain dopamine
2019, Brain ResearchThe epidemiology of benzodiazepine misuse: A systematic review
2019, Drug and Alcohol Dependence“I love having benzos after my coke shot”: The use of psychotropic medication among cocaine users in downtown Montreal
2017, International Journal of Drug PolicyCitation Excerpt :Other studies carried out among drug using populations other than PWUC have found similar patterns of prescription drug misuse: benzodiazepines, PO and quetiapine were used as downers from stimulant use (Fountain et al., 1999; Inciardi et al., 2007; Rigg et al., 2010; Roy, Arruda, Vaillancourt et al., 2012; Silva et al., 2013); benzodiazepines and/or PO as enhancers of opioid-based drugs, including methadone (Fountain et al., 1999; Iguchi et al., 1993; Lankenau et al., 2007, 2012b) and/or to curb heroin use (Lankenau et al., 2012b); prescribed stimulants to increase the effects of crystal meth (Kecojevic et al., 2015); benzodiazepines to reduce or suppress withdrawal symptoms from opioid-based drugs (Fountain et al., 1999; Gelkopf et al., 1993; Lankenau et al., 2012b; Rigg et al., 2010); and benzodiazepines, PO and/or quetiapine to medicate sleep, emotional problems (Gelkopf et al., 1993; Iguchi et al., 1993; Lankenau et al., 2007, 2012b; Rigg et al., 2010) and/or stress related to harsh life conditions (Kecojevic et al., 2015) as well as physical pain (Lankenau et al., 2007, 2012b). In addition, some studies have suggested that drug users took benzodiazepines and other tranquilizers exclusively as low-cost alternatives to getting “high” (Iguchi et al., 1993; Rigg et al., 2010), which is comparable to our finding about “rivotrips”. Nonetheless, the motives for taking benzodiazepines in controlled ways, as our participants identified, seem to point to a different practice, where the aim is mainly to “take a break” or “detox” from street drugs.
Alprazolam use and related harm among opioid substitution treatment clients – 12 months follow up after regulatory rescheduling
2016, International Journal of Drug PolicyReasons for Benzodiazepine use Among Persons Seeking Opioid Detoxification
2016, Journal of Substance Abuse TreatmentCitation Excerpt :Several studies have found that patients receiving chronic opioid agonist treatment (OAT) often use BZDs to help with anxiety and sleep (Gelkopf, Bleich, Hayward, Bodner, & Adelson, 1999; Posternak & Mueller, 2001; Vogel et al., 2013). Other work in OAT populations has suggested patients in methadone maintenance treatment take BZDs to get high (Chen et al., 2011; Fatseas, Lavie, Denis, & Auriacombe, 2009; Gelkopf et al., 1999; Iguchi, Handelsman, Bickel, & Griffiths, 1993). Fewer studies exploring reasons for use have focused on treatment-seeking opioid users.
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A preliminary version of this paper was presented at the Committee on Problems of Drug Dependence Meeting, 1989.