School of Population Health, University of Queensland, Herston QLD 4006, Australia.
Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf. 2010 Mar;19(3):280-8. doi: 10.1002/pds.1899.
New sedative drugs have been marketed in Australia in the last few years. We examined the trends in the prescribing of subsidised anxiolytic, hypnotic and sedative (AHS) medication use in the Australian population from 2002 to 2007.
We analysed the Medicare Australia and Drug Utilisation Sub-Committee databases for AHS script data from 2002 to 2007 by source, class of prescriber, gender and 5-year age groups. Scripts were converted to defined daily dose per 1000 population per day (DDD/1000 population/day) using Australian Bureau of Statistics population data.
Overall use of AHS increased from 23.76 to 24.11 DDD/1000 population/day between 2002 and 2007. Anxiolytic medication utilisation increased as hypnotic medication utilisation decreased. Diazepam was the most widely used anxiolytic followed by alprazolam and oxazepam. Temazepam was the most widely used hypnotic followed by nitrazepam. Medication use was concentrated in those aged > or = 65 years with peak use in those aged 85-89 years. There was substantial use of anxiolytics in those aged 30-65 years. Age-adjusted utilization was higher in females than males.
The prescribing of AHS medications increased slightly over the last half decade. There is growing use of zolpidem on private prescription. The gender differences in use reflect the higher prevalence of anxiety and sleep disorders in women. The very high use of these drugs in elderly people warrants further exploration because of the concomitant increased risks of mortality and morbidity.
在过去的几年中，澳大利亚市场上出现了一些新的镇静药物。我们研究了 2002 年至 2007 年期间澳大利亚人群中补贴的抗焦虑药、催眠药和镇静药（AHS）处方的趋势。
我们分析了 Medicare Australia 和 Drug Utilisation Sub-Committee 数据库中的 AHS 处方数据，数据来源为 2002 年至 2007 年，包括处方医师类别、性别和 5 岁年龄组。使用澳大利亚统计局的人口数据，将处方转换为每 1000 人口每天的定义日剂量（DDD/1000 人口/天）。
2002 年至 2007 年间，AHS 的总用量从 23.76 增至 24.11 DDD/1000 人口/天。随着催眠药用量的减少，抗焦虑药的用量增加。地西泮是最常用的抗焦虑药，其次是阿普唑仑和奥沙西泮。替马西泮是最常用的催眠药，其次是硝西泮。药物使用集中在年龄≥65 岁的人群中，年龄在 85-89 岁的人群中使用量最高。30-65 岁年龄组也大量使用抗焦虑药。调整年龄后的利用率女性高于男性。
在过去的五年中，AHS 药物的处方略有增加。在私人处方中，唑吡坦的使用量不断增加。使用方面的性别差异反映了女性焦虑和睡眠障碍的发病率较高。这些药物在老年人中的高使用率需要进一步研究，因为这会增加死亡率和发病率的风险。
