Negative effects of the use of benzodiazepines in older adults

Introduction: One part of polypharmacy is related to different medical conditions that come with age in senior patients. Whether they are adequately prescribed or not, most pharmaceutical compounds may potentially produce negative effects in consumers. One of the most highly prescribed psychopharmaceutics in seniors is benzodiazepine. This drug, usually prescribed to treat insomnia or anxiety, is said to be potentially risky for patients’ health. Objective: To determine the existence of scientific evidence of benzodiazepine negative effects in seniors. Method: Scientific publications from 2007 through to 2017 were systematic ally consulted. The database was Scielo, Pubmed, Redalyc, Ebscohost, and Google Scholar.  Keywords for the search included seniors, benzodiazepines, physical and psychological effects, psychopharmaceutics, both in English and Spanish. Findings: The most hig hly consumed benzodiazepine by seniors is Diazepam. Anxiety and insomnia are among the most frequent reasons for its prescription. Regarding negative effects, this drug is highly addictive. Side effects include a high probability of falling, leaving bone fractures as a result, decline of cognitive abilities, and a paradoxical increase of the symptoms for which it was originally prescribed. Senior consumers of benzodiazepine are more frequently female.