Posted by Kon on December 9, 2003, at 12:32:53
In reply to Re: SSRI versus benzodiazepine withdrawl/dependency » Kon, posted by jay on December 9, 2003, at 7:53:35
Actually I agree with most of what you say. The problem and what I believe the main point of the article was, is that given very similar potential risks/problems between SSRIs and benzos;
1. Why are benzos singled out over SSRIs as being potentially more problematic. This occurs not only in the UK but also in many other countries. For instance, in Canada, federal legislation singles out Benzodiazepines in a separate class that supposedly has a higher potential of abuse, etc,. SSRIs are not. What this does is to make docs more likely to prescribe SSRIs over benzos when in fact, benzos would have been a better choice for many patients.
2. Why do most studies that initially praise clonazepam for it's usefulness in a number of disorders including Social anxiety disorder, still do not recommend it as first line therapy in such disorders because of potential for dependency. Don't SSRIs have the same risk potential. In fact, judging from the UK and WHO data, the SSRIs are more likely to cause problems (see the article).
So the issue is not so much potential for dependency, etc. but objectivity in evaluating, legislating the different medications.
poster:Kon
thread:287722
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031208/msgs/288019.html