Letter to editor, a comment to: Prevalence and concentrations of sedative-hypnotic drugs in blood of drivers involved in road traffic crashes in the Padova region of Italy − Not so easy to interpret

• Published in: Forensic science international Vol. 332; p. 111204
• Main Authors: Casari, Rebecca, Zamboni, Lorenzo, Fusina, Francesca, Lugoboni, Fabio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.03.2022; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Abuse; Addiction; Addictions; Alcohol; Anesthesia; Benzodiazepine; Comorbidity; Conflicts of interest; Crashes; Drug abuse; Drug dependence; Drug dosages; Drugs; Lormetazepam; Narcotics; Opioids; Overdose; Pain; Public health; Traffic; Traffic accidents; Zolpidem; Italy; Zolpidem; Lormetazepam; Addiction; Abuse; Benzodiazepine
• ISSN: 0379-0738; 1872-6283; 1872-6283
• DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2022.111204

[...]acute BZD overdose carries a concrete risk of death only if associated with other psychoactive substances such as alcohol or drugs (e.g., opioid pain medication), which suppress respiratory centers [4]. According to literature findings, this issue affects 1.6% of BZD users [6], and additionally, high-dose BZD-dependent subjects often have other comorbid addictions [7]. In our opinion, the great diffusion of BZDs and hypnotic drugs, and especially concerning zolpidem, should be highlighted in order to better regulate their use. [...]it is especially important to monitor and intercept the patients that develop tolerance and dependence to these drugs over time, since they often do not use other psychoactive substances but have a driver’s license.