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Benzodiazepines in a Campinas household survey: understanding the medication denominator
A Brazilian survey described psychotropic use by sex, with benzodiazepines representing part of the medication mix.
A Brazilian survey described psychotropic use by sex, with benzodiazepines representing part of the medication mix.
Population use and drug-class share
The cross-sectional survey included 1,999 adults aged at least 20 in Campinas during 2014–2015. Overall psychotropic use was 11.7%, compared with 7.3% among men and 15.8% among women. Benzodiazepines accounted for 24% of the reported psychotropic medication distribution.
That class share should not be rewritten as 24% of all surveyed adults taking benzodiazepines. The paper also found that the characteristics associated with psychotropic use differed between men and women.
What the survey cannot resolve
Self-reported medication information and a one-time design limit exposure reconstruction and causal interpretation. Greater use among people with health problems may reflect treatment need, access to care, or other differences rather than a medication causing those problems.
For an individual assessment, sex-specific population patterns do not establish misuse, dependence, or impairment. The useful contribution is a denominator-aware description of prescribing and use. Preserve the distinction between all participants, psychotropic users, and the drugs reported before applying any percentage to a legal or clinical question.
Source paper
Original analysis of the supplied journal article, identified as PMC6257918.