Effect of hospitalization on hypnotic drug use

Hypnotics are widely prescribed and used in the hospital setting. Patients receiving bedtime sedation regularly during hospitalization might feel a need for continued hypnotic therapy after discharge. The present study investigates patient use of hypnotics before, during and after hospitalization. The purpose was to determine whether hospitalization leads to a change in hypnotic drug use in patients admitted to the Acute Care Unit of the UBC Health Sciences Centre Hospital (UBC HSCH-ACU). Patients were selected to take part in the study according to established criteria. They were interviewed about their pre-hospitalization use of hypnotics and their charts were reviewed to determine in-hospital use. Fourteen to 29 days after discharge, patients were telephoned to ascertain their post-hospitalization hypnotic use. Patient use of hypnotics was categorized as regular (two or more times a week), occasional (one or less times a week up to once a year) and rare (less than once a year). One hundred and one patients completed the study. Seventeen percent used hypnotics regularly, 20% used hypnotics occasionally and 63% rarely used hypnotics before coming to hospital. Twenty percent of males and 15% of females took hypnotics regularly prior to hospitalization: hypnotic use increased with age for both sexes. During hospitalization, regular hypnotic usage rose to 48% for both males and females (p less than 0.005); 56% of medical in-patients and 42% of surgical in-patients took bedtime sedation regularly. Following discharge, 21% of patients were using hypnotics on a regular basis. Overall, there was a 4% increase (p greater than 0.1) in the number of patients using hypnotics regularly after discharge. Admission to UBC HSCH-ACU did not significantly increase the post-hospitalization use of hypnotics in these patients. The variables of age, sex and hospital service did not have an effect on post-hospitalization hypnotic drug use.