[Benzodiazepine consumption: survey of community pharmacies in Aquitaine]

For many years, the use of benzodiazepines has been particularly high in France. This use can be described through pharmacy delivery. A cross-sectional one-day survey was conducted in June 1999, within a randomly selected network of community pharmacies in Aquitaine. Pharmacists were asked to interview each patient presenting with a prescription form including at least one benzodiazepine. A total of 58 pharmacies participated in this study; 328 patients were included representing 356 benzodiazepines prescribed. Among the 20 different benzodiazepines concerned, bromazepam, lorazepam and alprazolam represented more than half (54 per cent) of the prescriptions. The mean age of the patients was 62 years (median: 64) and 70 per cent of them were women. Most patients (93 per cent) were known to the pharmacist and 86 per cent had benzodiazepines prescribed by a single physician. In most cases (77 per cent), the prescribed benzodiazepine had been used for more than one year and in one quarter for more than five years. For 81 per cent of chronic users, no dose increase was observed. This study confirmed that long-term use of benzodiazepines is frequent, particularly in the elderly. This use is commonly accepted by health professionals as well as by patients, although it clearly reflects the dependence potential of benzodiazepines.