A dangerous cocktail

From the Globe and Mail:
The sudden death of 28-year-old actor Heath Ledger, whose body was found Tuesday with sleeping pills nearby, has highlighted the dangers surrounding a drug class prescribed to millions of Canadians each year: sedatives.

An autopsy was inconclusive and more tests are needed to determine how the Australian-born former Oscar nominee died in his SoHo apartment, the New York medical examiner's office said yesterday.

But police reports that sleeping pills and anti-anxiety medications were found in the apartment - combined with a recent interview in which Mr. Ledger said he was using Ambien, a brand of sedative - suggest prescription drugs may have played a role.

While sleeping pills used alone are "reasonably safe," mixing those pills with other sedatives is a dangerous cocktail, said Jack Uetrecht, who holds a Canada Research Chair in immunotoxicology and whose research looks at adverse drug reactions. ...more

Many use sleeping pills after hospital stay

From CTV News:
Half of elderly Canadian patients who are prescribed the type of sleeping pills called benzodiazepines after being sent home from the hospital are still chronic users of the drugs six months later, finds a new study.

Doctors say the trend is worrisome because benzodiazepines can be addictive. They have also been linked to falls and related injuries such as hip fractures, motor vehicle collisions, as well as cognitive impairment -- particularly when combined with other drugs or alcohol.

"Many patients are first introduced to benzodiazepines during hospitalization," says Dr. Chaim Bell, the lead author of the study and an adjunct scientist with ICES, the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, "and although the intent may have been to manage insomnia during the short period of time the patient was in hospital, there are concerns that their use in hospital may result in chronic use after discharge, together with the accompanying risks." ...more