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Psychotropic drugs and risk of motor vehicle accidents: a population‐based case‐control study
Author(s) -
Chang ChiaMing,
Wu Erin ChiaHsuan,
Chen ChuanYu,
Wu KuanYi,
Liang HsinYi,
Chau YeukLun,
Wu ChiShin,
Lin KehMing,
Tsai HuiJu
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
british journal of clinical pharmacology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.216
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1365-2125
pISSN - 0306-5251
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2125.2012.04410.x
Subject(s) - medicine , poison control , injury prevention , population , human factors and ergonomics , suicide prevention , emergency medicine , pharmacology , medical emergency , environmental health
Aim To examine comprehensively the relationship between exposure to four classes of psychotropic drugs including antipsychotics, antidepressants, benzodiazepines ( BZDs ) and Z‐drugs, and motor vehicle accidents ( MVAs ). Method The authors conducted a matched case‐control study of 5183 subjects with MVAs and 31 093 matched controls, identified from the claims records of outpatient service visits during the period from 2000 to 2009. Inclusion criteria were defined as subjects aged equal to or more than 18 years and involved in MVAs . Conditional logistic regressions with covariates adjustment (including urbanity, psychiatric and non‐psychiatric outpatient visits and C harlson comorbidity score) were applied to examine the effect of four classes of psychotropic drugs on MVAs . Results Significant increased risk of MVAs was found in subjects taking antidepressants within 1 month (adjusted odds ratio ( AOR ) 1.73, 95% confidence interval ( CI ) 1.34, 2.22), 1 week ( AOR 1.71, 95% CI 1.29, 2.26), and 1 day ( AOR 1.70, 95% CI 1.26, 2.29) before MVAs occurred. Similar results were observed in subjects taking benzodiazepines ( BZDs ) ( AOR 1.56, 95% CI 1.38, 1.75 for 1 month; AOR 1.64, 95% CI 1.43, 1.88 for 1 week, and AOR 1.62, 95% CI 1.39, 1.88 for 1 day) and Z‐drugs ( AOR 1.42, 95% CI 1.14, 1.76 for 1 month, AOR 1.37, 95% CI 1.06, 1.75 for 1 week, AOR 1.34, 95% CI 1.03, 1.75 for 1 day), but not antipsychotics. Moreover, significant dose effects of antidepressants (equal to or more than 0.6–1.0 DDD ), BZDs (equal to or more than 0.1–0.5 DDD ) and Z ‐drugs (more than 1 DDD ) were observed, respectively, on the risk of experiencing an MVA . Conclusion Taken together, subjects taking antidepressants, BZDs and Z ‐drugs, separately, should be particularly cautioned for their increasing risk of MVAs .