Prevalence and Incidence of Oral Benzodiazepine Use in Hospitalized Surgical Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of intrahospital oral benzodiazepine use in the surgical population of a tertiary care centre.

Summary Of Background Data: Oral benzodiazepines used for treating sleep disturbances and anxiety are widely used in the general population. Information regarding benzodiazepine use during hospitalization is scarce.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using routinely collected healthcare data in a university hospital in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. 10,896 patients representing 14,928 admissions were included in this cohort, corresponding to all adult surgical patients admitted between September 2018 and September 2022. Median age was 62 (50-72) and 8,761 out of 14928 (58.9%) were male. Main outcome measures were prevalence and incidence of oral benzodiazepines usage during hospitalization.

Results: Prevalence of benzodiazepine administrations in the surgical department was 21.6% out of 14,928 admissions. Median number of tablets given during hospital stay was 3 (1-7). Temazepam (33%), oxazepam (24%) and zopiclone (19%) were prescribed most. Female patients were more likely to have been administered a benzodiazepine, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.09 (95% confidence interval 1.002 to 1.19). Benzodiazepine administration during admission was positively associated with higher 30-day surgical readmission, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.37 (1.22 to 1.54).

Conclusions: In this study, one fifth of patients admitted to surgical departments were administered oral benzodiazepines for sleep disturbances and anxiety. Future research and policies should focus on finding and implementing effective non-pharmacological methods for perioperative sleep disturbances and anxiety.