Benzodiazepine Does Not Cause Hip Fractures

Ivanhoe Newswire
Wednesday, January 17, 2007; 12:00 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Benzodiazepine is a sedative drug doctors often prescribe for anxiety, sleep and seizure disorders. Previous studies suggested the drug is associated with an increase in hip fractures in the elderly, causing legislation to limit access to this drug. But now researchers say benzodiazepine use is not shown to be associated with hip fractures after all.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School in Boston wanted to know if a New York State policy calling for a drastic reduction in the use of benzodiazepine resulted in fewer hip fractures among the elderly. The policy required benzodiazepine to be prescribed on a triplicate form in 1989. Physicians must obtain and pay for the forms and pharmacists must give a copy to state health authorities. The policy resulted in a 60-percent reduction in the use of the drug in women and a 58-percent reduction in use for men. New Jersey did not implement such a policy and benzodiazepine use rates stayed the same.

Researchers report the rates of hip fracture before and after the policy in New York State were similar. They also did not find any decline in hip fracture rates compared to New Jersey. In fact, they report more hip fractures occurred in New York than in New Jersey despite the drastic decrease in the use of benzodiazepine.

Study authors write because of previous research, benzodiazepines have been excluded from coverage through the Medicare Part D drug benefit since January 2006. While policy makers may have thought this would decrease hip fracture risk, study authors conclude this study shows that may not be the case.

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SOURCE: Annals of Internal Medicine, 2007;146:96-103