Introduction:

benzodiazepines (BZD) constitute one of the most widely prescribed pharmacological groups. The use modality and the risk of increase of avoidable adverse effects resulting from wide consumption may represent a public health problem in itself.

Objectives:

to learn about the use of benzodiazepine in a Uruguayan population between 2014 and 2018.

Method:

a study was conducted on the use of medications to evaluate BZD consumption administered orally, by consulting dispensing of pharmacies in the health institutions, through the DHD variable (daily human doses/1.000 inhabitants/day).

Results:

7 institutions participated in the study, representing 65% of the Uruguayan population. Global DHD were 116.05, 114.36, 117.32, 131.17 and 124.4 for 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively, with a 7% increase in the period of study.

Conclusions:

the use of benzodiazepines was still high at the national level between 2014 and 2018 and greater than the figure found in the previous study, conducted between 2010 and 2012. Compared to other countries, Uruguayan figures are among the highest. All relevant actors in the drug chain need to develop strategies to control the situation.

        · abstract in Spanish | Portuguese     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )