Benzodiazepines: Use, abuse and mechanisms of action.

Abstract

Since their introduction in the 1960s, benzodiazepines were happily welcomed as a safe drugs compared to the barbiturates they replaced. Next to their strong therapeutic effect, they were also safe in use compared to their precursors. The latter is because of the different working mechanism benzodiazepines have. Unlike barbiturates which do not need GABA neurotransmitter to activate the GABAa receptor because they can activate the receptor directly, benzodiazepines can only enhance GABA neurotransmitter effects and so only work when GABA is available. Without GABA they have no effect. Because of this, the risk for a benzodiazepine overdose is very small (Atack, 2005). This paper will describe the therapeutical effects of benzodiazepines, the different types of benzodiazepines and the people and amount of people who use benzodiazepines. Furthermore the mechanisms of actions of benzodiazepines will be explained and next to that it will also discuss the potential advantages and disadvantages of benzodiazepines. Continuing on the disadvantages of benzodiazepines it will get clear that benzodiazepines are not as safe as initially thought. A risk for dependence and abuse of benzodiazepines is there (Atack, 2005). Therefore, the last subjects of this paper will be dependence and addiction in general, and dependence plus addiction to benzodiazepines.