Anxiolytic & Hypnotic Adverse Events · Section 3 · Chapter 6 · Benzodiazepines
Benzodiazepines and Dementia Risk: What the Evidence Shows and What to Tell Patients
"Do benzodiazepines cause dementia?" is now one of the commonest questions patients and families ask. The honest answer is that there is a modest association whose cause is unproven, while the cognitive harms you can see in the clinic are real. This chapter covers what the studies show, why the link is uncertain, what is not in doubt, and what to do and say.
The 30-second version
- The studies. Meta-analyses of observational studies find an association between benzodiazepine use and later dementia, putting it at about 1.4 to 1.5 times the risk, though not every cohort does. Its size depends on how well other illness is accounted for: in a 2026 Korean cohort, the hazard ratio fell from 1.43 to 1.15, and in a US cohort of older adults risk was not higher at the highest cumulative use.
- Why it is uncertain. People prescribed benzodiazepines carry more physical and psychiatric illness, and early symptoms of dementia may themselves lead to a prescription. A meta-analysis of studies designed to allow for this still found a smaller but significant association, but the question is not settled: an association has been observed, but whether it is causal remains unresolved.
- What is not in doubt. Older adults are more sensitive to benzodiazepines. In short-term trials in adults 60 or older with insomnia, sedative-hypnotics, benzodiazepines and Z-drugs, raised the odds of adverse cognitive events and daytime fatigue compared with placebo; psychomotor side effects such as dizziness or loss of balance were also more common, though not significantly in the main analysis. The 2023 Beers Criteria advise avoiding them in older adults, including those with dementia or cognitive impairment, delirium or its risk, or a history of falls.
- What to do. New or sudden confusion needs same-day assessment for delirium, not a dementia label. In older adults, the guideline recommends generally tapering unless there are compelling reasons to continue, slowly, with care partners involved, never abruptly.
- What to tell patients. Give the honest numbers: the dementia link is modest and uncertain, but falls, sedation and memory and attention problems are real, and they are the better reasons to review the prescription.
At the visit: an older adult on a benzodiazepine, or a worried patient
About 2 min to read · the detailed chapter follows below
Do now
- Ask whether any change in memory or thinking was sudden (hours to days) or gradual (months).
- Treat sudden confusion as possible delirium: same-day assessment.
- Review the benzodiazepine dose, duration and every other sedating medicine.
- In an older adult, reassess risks and benefits now; unless there are compelling reasons to continue, generally plan an individualized, gradual taper, never an abrupt stop.
- Give the patient and family the honest numbers on dementia risk.
Do not
- Tell a patient that benzodiazepines cause dementia.
- Tell them there is no cognitive risk.
- Stop a long-term benzodiazepine abruptly because of dementia fears.
- Label sudden confusion as dementia before delirium is ruled out.
- Assume memory complaints are only the drug, and skip a cognitive assessment.
Five questions to ask
- Did the change in memory or thinking come on suddenly or slowly? Sudden change points to delirium and needs same-day assessment.
- What dose, for how long, and what other sedatives? Combined sedatives add to the cognitive and fall risk.
- Any falls, near-falls or daytime drowsiness? These are among the known harms in older adults.
- Why was it started, and is that still the reason? The original indication decides what replaces it.
- Who helps the patient with medicines? Care partners are central to a taper in someone with cognitive impairment.
Same-day or emergency assessment if any of
- New or sudden confusion, drowsiness or disorientation over hours to days
- A fall with injury, or a head strike
- Signs of overdose, or co-use with opioids and excessive sedation (Chapter 1)
- Confusion during a taper or after stopping (Chapter 2)
Review risks and benefits now if any of
- An older adult on a long-term benzodiazepine
- Gradual memory or attention complaints
- Falls, near-falls or daytime sedation
- Other sedating medicines
Worried, no cognitive change: counsel and review
Give the honest numbers, explain the known harms, and review the prescription at least every 3 months and at each renewal.
Prescriber-side triage for cognitive concerns in benzodiazepine users. Our synthesis of the 2025 joint tapering guideline and the studies in this chapter, not a validated instrument [1][2][3].
Why patients are worried
- Headlines report the association, not the adjusted figure
- Memory complaints are common in long-term users
- Families see sedation and assume decline
Record in the chart
- Onset of any cognitive change: sudden or gradual
- Dose, duration and other sedatives
- Falls and daytime sedation
- What the patient and family were told
- The risk–benefit decision and next review
Look up the situation
Tap the situation for what it means and what to do.
Sudden change
Gradual concern, older adult
No cognitive change
New or sudden confusion on a benzodiazepine
Same dayAssess for delirium the same day; delirium is a recognized adverse effect of benzodiazepines [1].
What to do
- Same-day or emergency assessment
- Review the dose and every other sedating medicine
- Look for urgent underlying causes, including medication toxicity or withdrawal, infection, metabolic disturbance and neurological causes
Keep in mind
- Do not label it dementia before delirium is ruled out
- Do not stop a long-term benzodiazepine abruptly (Chapter 2)
Older adult, long-term use, gradual memory complaints
Review and taperGenerally taper in older adults unless there are compelling reasons to continue (Rec 27) [1].
What to do
- Do a full medication review before tapering [1]
- Assess cognition in its own right
- Plan a slow taper with care partners, with clear written instructions [1]
Keep in mind
- Older adults are more sensitive: memory, learning, attention and visuospatial ability [1]
- Tapering with cognitive impairment can be challenging; involve care partners [1]
- Beers 2023: avoid in dementia or cognitive impairment [7]
Patient or family worried about dementia, no cognitive change
CounselThere is a modest association; much of it shrinks once other illness is accounted for, and it has not been shown to be causal [2][5][6].
What to do
- Give the numbers: 1.43 before and 1.15 after adjustment [2]
- Review risks and benefits at least every 3 months (Rec 1) [1]
Keep in mind
- Falls, sedation and cognitive effects are the better reasons to review [1]
- Fear is not a reason to stop abruptly
All three situations on one page (figure)
Figure 1. Cognitive concerns in a benzodiazepine user, and what to do with each. Our summary of the 2025 joint tapering guideline and the studies in this chapter [1][2][3].
What the studies show
Meta-analyses of observational studies find an association between benzodiazepine use and later dementia, putting it at about 1.4 to 1.5 times the risk, though not every cohort does. Its size depends on how well other illness is accounted for: in a 2026 Korean cohort, the hazard ratio fell from 1.43 to 1.15, and in a US cohort of older adults risk was not higher at the highest cumulative use.
| Study | Finding | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Korean national claims cohort: 132,805 benzodiazepine users and 132,805 age- and sex-matched controls | Hazard ratio for overall dementia attenuated from 1.43 to 1.15 (95% CI 1.09 to 1.22) after full adjustment; similar attenuation for Alzheimer's disease and severe dementia | Kim 2026, J Alzheimers Dis [2] |
| Same cohort, people who developed dementia | Progression to severe dementia not increased (adjusted HR 0.98, 95% CI 0.84 to 1.14), with no dose- or duration-response | Kim 2026 [2] |
| Meta-analysis: 6 studies, 45,391 participants, 11,891 dementia cases | Ever use: pooled adjusted RR 1.49 (95% CI 1.30 to 1.72) versus never use; the authors advise caution because of the small number of studies and possible reverse causation | Zhong 2015, PLoS One [5] |
| Meta-analysis: 15 studies, 159,090 cases | Ever use: OR 1.39 (95% CI 1.21 to 1.59); the authors conclude the association is not purely an artefact of protopathic bias | Penninkilampi 2018, CNS Drugs [6] |
| US prospective cohort: 3,434 adults aged 65 or older without dementia, mean follow-up 7.3 years | Dementia risk slightly higher with minimal exposure (HR 1.25, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.51, for 1–30 total standardized daily doses), but not with the highest exposure (HR 1.07, 0.82 to 1.39, for 121 or more) | Gray 2016, BMJ [3] |
| Same US cohort | Higher benzodiazepine use was not associated with more rapid cognitive decline | Gray 2016 [3] |
The detail: reading the 1.43 and the 1.15
The Korean study is a matched cohort from national health insurance claims, adjusted for the Charlson Comorbidity Index and clinical covariates. Benzodiazepine users had more multimorbidity and psychiatric comorbidity than their matched controls, and adjustment reduced the hazard ratio from 1.43 to 1.15. The authors interpret the attenuation as suggesting that comorbidity may explain much of the observed association, although residual confounding remains possible; they conclude that benzodiazepine use showed only a modest association with incident dementia and was not associated with faster progression to severe dementia [2]. The difference in the two groups was large: a Charlson Comorbidity Index of 7 or more in 42.5% of users versus 26.5% of controls, and anxiety disorders in 42.6% versus 2.7%. Dementia incidence was 382.4 per 100,000 person-years in users versus 280.7 in controls [2]. These are group incidence rates, not an individual's probability of developing dementia, and the adjusted hazard ratio describes a relative association, not an absolute increase in risk.
The US study runs the other way from what a causal effect would predict: risk was slightly higher at low exposure and not raised at the highest exposure. Its authors conclude that the results do not support a causal association between benzodiazepine use and dementia [3]. The meta-analyses point the other way: one found risk rising with cumulative dose, and another found the association persisted, though attenuated, in studies designed to minimize reverse causation [5][6]. The two kinds of evidence have not been reconciled.
Why the link is uncertain
People prescribed benzodiazepines carry more physical and psychiatric illness, and early symptoms of dementia may themselves lead to a prescription. A meta-analysis of studies designed to allow for this still found a smaller but significant association, but the question is not settled: an association has been observed, but whether it is causal remains unresolved.
| Problem | What it does to the result | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Users are sicker | More multimorbidity and psychiatric comorbidity; adjusting for it shrank the hazard ratio from 1.43 to 1.15 | Kim 2026 [2] |
| Reverse causation (protopathic bias) | Early symptoms of a developing dementia may lead to the prescription. Studies with lag times of 5 years or more, intended to reduce this bias, still found an attenuated but significant association (OR 1.30, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.48, versus 1.39 overall); a lag period reduces this concern but does not eliminate it | Penninkilampi 2018 meta-analysis [6]; Zhong 2015 [5] |
| Dose-response | Inconsistent: risk was not higher at the highest cumulative exposure in one cohort, but rose 22% for every additional 20 defined daily doses a year in a meta-analysis | Gray 2016 [3]; Zhong 2015 [5] |
| Observational design | Neither study can establish cause; both sets of authors stop short of it | Kim 2026 [2]; Gray 2016 [3] |
What is not in doubt
Older adults are more sensitive to benzodiazepines. In short-term trials in adults 60 or older with insomnia, sedative-hypnotics, benzodiazepines and Z-drugs, raised the odds of adverse cognitive events and daytime fatigue compared with placebo; psychomotor side effects such as dizziness or loss of balance were also more common, though not significantly in the main analysis. The 2023 Beers Criteria advise avoiding them in older adults, including those with dementia or cognitive impairment, delirium or its risk, or a history of falls.
| Harm | Finding | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Adverse cognitive events | Odds ratio 4.78 (95% CI 1.47 to 15.47) versus placebo with any sedative-hypnotic, in a meta-analysis of randomized trials of at least five nights in people 60 or older with insomnia (24 studies, 2,417 participants) | Glass 2005, BMJ [8]; cited in the joint guideline [1] |
| Daytime fatigue | Odds ratio 3.82 (1.88 to 7.80) in the same meta-analysis | Glass 2005 [8] |
| Adverse psychomotor events | Odds ratio 2.61 (95% CI 1.12 to 6.09) for adverse psychomotor events in the meta-analysis abstract, where the reported P value is inconsistent with the confidence interval. The main text reports psychomotor-type side effects, such as dizziness or loss of balance, as not reaching significance: odds ratio 2.25 (0.93 to 5.41; P = 0.07; 13 studies, 1,016 participants); of the 59 psychomotor effects reported, seven were serious (six falls and one motor vehicle crash). The authors conclude the benefits may not justify the increased risk in people over 60 | Glass 2005 [8] |
| Hip fracture | Increased risk with current and recent use in older adults (RR 1.34, another meta-analysis) | Cited in the joint guideline [1] |
| Sensitivity with age | Metabolic changes with aging increase the risk of cognitive impairment, particularly in memory, learning, attention and visuospatial ability | Joint guideline [1] |
| Older adults in general | Avoid (moderate-quality evidence, strong recommendation): all benzodiazepines increase the risk of cognitive impairment, delirium, falls, fractures and motor vehicle crashes in older adults, who also have increased sensitivity and decreased metabolism of long-acting agents | AGS Beers Criteria 2023, Table 2 [7] |
| Dementia or cognitive impairment | Avoid, because of adverse central nervous system effects (moderate-quality evidence) | Beers 2023, Table 3 [7] |
| Delirium, or high risk of it | Avoid, because of the potential to induce or worsen delirium | Beers 2023, Table 3 [7] |
| History of falls or fractures | Avoid unless safer alternatives are not available; shorter-acting benzodiazepines are not safer than long-acting ones | Beers 2023, Table 3 [7] |
| Long-term use | Associated with ongoing risk of falls, motor vehicle accidents and cognitive impairment | Joint guideline [1] |
The detail: the guideline's reasoning for older adults
The 2025 joint guideline notes that although benzodiazepines may offer short-term benefits, their adverse effects, including falls and cognitive impairment, have generally been shown to outweigh the marginal benefits in adults 65 and older [1]. For insomnia, it adds that therapeutic effects diminish within days to weeks while the risks remain [1]. That is the basis for its recommendation to generally taper in older adults unless there are compelling reasons to continue (Recommendation 27; Clinical Consensus, Strong) [1]. The argument does not depend on the dementia question at all.
The 2023 AGS Beers Criteria reach the same place by a different route: avoid benzodiazepines in older adults, because all of them increase the risk of cognitive impairment, delirium, falls, fractures and motor vehicle crashes [7]. Beers lists situations where a benzodiazepine may still be appropriate, including seizure disorders, REM sleep behavior disorder, benzodiazepine or alcohol withdrawal, severe generalized anxiety disorder and periprocedural anesthesia [7]. In our reading, these are the kind of situations in which continuation may be justified. The guideline's own example of a compelling reason is different: controlling agitation in an older adult, where the benefit may outweigh the adverse effects [1]. Either way, the decision rests on a careful assessment of risks and benefits for the individual patient [1].
What to do
New or sudden confusion needs same-day assessment for delirium, not a dementia label. In older adults, the guideline recommends generally tapering unless there are compelling reasons to continue, slowly, with care partners involved, never abruptly.
| Situation | What to do | Source |
|---|---|---|
| New or sudden confusion | Same-day or emergency assessment for delirium; delirium is among the recognized adverse effects of benzodiazepines | Joint guideline [1]; our synthesis |
| Older adult on a benzodiazepine | Generally taper unless there are compelling reasons to continue | Joint guideline, Rec 27 [1] |
| Pace in older adults | Even lower doses may carry significant withdrawal risk because of changes in metabolism; start with smaller dose reductions and proceed more slowly | Joint guideline, patient panel [1] |
| Before tapering in an older adult | Full medication review and reconciliation, since older adults often take multiple medicines from multiple prescribers | Joint guideline [1] |
| Cognitive impairment | Involve care partners in shared decision-making; give the patient and care partners clear instructions about the taper; educational materials such as brochures can help | Joint guideline [1] |
| Dementia, cognitive impairment or delirium risk | Avoid benzodiazepines where possible; plan a taper rather than an abrupt stop | Beers 2023 [7]; joint guideline, Rec 2 [1] |
| Any long-term user | Do not stop abruptly in a patient likely to be physically dependent; taper gradually (Chapter 5) | Joint guideline, Rec 2 [1] |
| Continuing for now | Review risks and benefits at least every 3 months, and at each renewal | Joint guideline, Recs 1 and 1a [1] |
The detail: memory complaints are not a diagnosis
A long-term user with gradual memory complaints may have benzodiazepine-related cognitive effects, an emerging dementia, another cause, or a mix. In our view, the taper and the cognitive assessment should run side by side, with neither replacing the other; this is clinical judgment rather than a study finding. The guideline notes that tapering in older adults with cognitive impairment can be challenging, particularly when the patient may lack capacity for independent decisions, which is why care partners belong in the plan from the start [1].
Stopping is not risk-free either. In a large observational comparative-effectiveness study, apparent discontinuation of stable long-term benzodiazepine treatment was associated with a small absolute increase in 12-month mortality and other potential harms [4]; the study does not establish that discontinuation caused them. The guideline notes that this association may reflect the reason for stopping, such as declining health, falls or cognitive decline, rather than the discontinuation itself [1]. Either way, the answer is the same: a deliberate, slow taper with follow-up, not an abrupt stop.
What to tell patients
Give the honest numbers: the dementia link is modest and uncertain, but falls, sedation and memory and attention problems are real, and they are the better reasons to review the prescription.
| They ask | An honest answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| "Will this give me dementia?" | Studies do find a link, but it shrinks a lot once other illnesses are taken into account, and they cannot show that the medicine causes dementia | Kim 2026 [2]; Gray 2016 [3]; meta-analyses [5][6] |
| "Then why change anything?" | Because in older adults it can cause drowsiness, falls and problems with memory and attention, and, for insomnia, the benefit may fade within days to weeks while the risks persist | Joint guideline [1] |
| "Should I stop today?" | No. After long-term use, stopping suddenly can be dangerous; a slow, planned reduction is safer | Joint guideline, Rec 2 [1]; Chapter 5 |
| "If I already have dementia, will it get worse faster?" | In a large 2026 Korean study, benzodiazepine use was not linked to faster progression to severe dementia | Kim 2026 [2] |
Clinical pearls
- 1.43 became 1.15 once illness was counted.
- Dose-response findings are inconsistent.That is part of why causation is unproven.
- The cognitive harms in older adults are not in doubt.Memory, attention, sedation and falls.
- Sudden confusion is delirium until proven otherwise.
- Memory complaints need their own assessment.Do not assume it is only the drug.
- Taper older adults unless there is a compelling reason not to.Individually, gradually and after a risk–benefit review.
- Dementia fear is never a reason to stop abruptly.
- Bring the care partner into the plan.
Patient script & EMR note
Counseling script: to the patient and family, in clinic
"You've read that lorazepam can cause dementia, and I understand why that's frightening. Here's what the research actually shows. Large studies do find a link, but it shrinks a lot once you account for the other health problems people on these medicines tend to have, and these studies can't establish that the medicine causes dementia. The evidence is genuinely uncertain.
What we do know is that at your age it can cause drowsiness, falls, and trouble with memory and attention, and that for sleep, its benefit can fade while those risks stay. Those are the real reasons I'd like us to talk about bringing it down. First, tell me how you're sleeping on it now.
We won't stop it suddenly. After this long, that could be dangerous. We'll reduce it slowly over months, and I'd like your daughter to help with the plan. Separately, I'll check your memory properly, because memory problems can have other causes we shouldn't miss.
If you ever become suddenly confused, very drowsy or have a fall, call us the same day or go to the emergency department."
EMR note: copy, paste and edit
BENZODIAZEPINE – COGNITION / DEMENTIA-RISK
REVIEW
Benzodiazepine: [ ] Dose: [ ] Duration: [ ]
Other sedating medicines: [ ]
Age: [ ]
Cognitive change: [none / gradual / sudden]
onset and course: [ ]
Delirium considered (if sudden): [ ]
Falls / near-falls / daytime sedation: [ ]
Care partner involved: [ ]
Counseling given:
[ ] Dementia association modest, attenuated
after adjustment; causation unproven
[ ] Known harms: sedation, falls, cognition
[ ] Do not stop abruptly
Plan:
[ ] Risk-benefit decision: [continue / taper]
and why: [ ]
[ ] Medication review / reconciliation done
[ ] Cognitive assessment: [ ]
[ ] Taper plan (Chapter 5): [ ]
[ ] Next review by 2026 (at least every
3 months)
Clinician: [ ] Date/time: [ ]
Case: Monday, 10:30 am
A 76-year-old man has taken lorazepam 1 mg at night for sleep for 15 years. His daughter brings him in: she has read that benzodiazepines cause Alzheimer's disease and wants it stopped today. Over the past year he has become more forgetful, gradually. He had a fall in the bathroom two months ago. He takes no other sedating medicines.
By the end of this chapter you should be able to answer the daughter's question honestly, and say what happens next.
Case resolution
The clinician first confirms that the change has been gradual over a year, not sudden, so there is no sign of delirium. They then give the honest answer: large studies find an association that shrinks substantially once other illness is accounted for, and it has not been shown to be causal [2][3][5][6]. But at 76, with a fall and gradual memory complaints, the risks warrant a careful review [1]. The clinician asks how he sleeps now and what benefit he notices, and discusses alternatives such as CBT for insomnia; together they decide that the risks now outweigh the benefits.
Stopping today would be the wrong move after 15 years of nightly use (Chapter 2). The clinician, the patient and his daughter agree on a slow taper (Recommendation 27; Chapter 5), with a medication review first, CBT for insomnia, and clear written instructions for the daughter [1]. His memory complaints are assessed in their own right rather than assumed to be the drug. The conversation, the plan and the next review date are recorded.
Why it matters
Fear of dementia now drives many requests to stop benzodiazepines, sometimes overnight. Telling patients the drug causes dementia overstates the evidence; telling them there is no cognitive risk understates it. The useful position is in between: the dementia link is modest and uncertain, the cognitive and fall risks in older adults are real, and the safe response to either is a planned, gradual taper with the family involved.
References (8)
- Brunner E, Chen CA, Klein T, et al. Joint clinical practice guideline on benzodiazepine tapering: considerations when risks outweigh benefits. J Gen Intern Med. 2025;40:2814–2859. Background on risks of benzodiazepine use; Recommendations 1, 1a, 2 and 27 and their rationale; section on special populations (older adults). The older-adult recommendation is numbered 27 in the guideline's summary of recommendations and 29 in its detailed Older Adults section, where 28 precedes it; this chapter uses the summary-list number. Source type: guideline (peer-reviewed).
- Kim H, Kim J, Choi H, Kim YS. Benzodiazepine use, incident dementia and Alzheimer's disease, and progression to severe dementia: a nationwide Korean cohort study. J Alzheimers Dis. Published online 9 October 2026. doi:10.1177/13872877261492672. PMID 42853249. Source type: observational cohort (peer-reviewed).
- Gray SL, Dublin S, Yu O, Walker R, Anderson M, Hubbard RA, Crane PK, Larson EB. Benzodiazepine use and risk of incident dementia or cognitive decline: prospective population based study. BMJ. 2016;352:i90. doi:10.1136/bmj.i90. Source type: prospective cohort (peer-reviewed).
- Maust DT, Petzold K, Strominger J, Kim HM, Bohnert ASB. Benzodiazepine discontinuation and mortality among patients receiving long-term benzodiazepine therapy. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(12):e2348557. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.48557. Source type: observational comparative effectiveness study (peer-reviewed).
- Zhong G, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Zhao Y. Association between benzodiazepine use and dementia: a meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2015;10(5):e0127836. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0127836. Source type: meta-analysis of observational studies (peer-reviewed).
- Penninkilampi R, Eslick GD. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the risk of dementia associated with benzodiazepine use, after controlling for protopathic bias. CNS Drugs. 2018;32(6):485–497. doi:10.1007/s40263-018-0535-3. Source type: meta-analysis of observational studies (peer-reviewed).
- By the 2023 American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria Update Expert Panel. American Geriatrics Society 2023 updated AGS Beers Criteria for potentially inappropriate medication use in older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2023;71(7):2052–2081. doi:10.1111/jgs.18372. Tables 2 and 3. Author manuscript: PMC12478568. Source type: consensus criteria (peer-reviewed).
- Glass J, Lanctôt KL, Herrmann N, Sproule BA, Busto UE. Sedative hypnotics in older people with insomnia: meta-analysis of risks and benefits. BMJ. 2005;331(7526):1169. doi:10.1136/bmj.38623.768588.47. Source type: meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (peer-reviewed).
Last reviewed October 2026. Part of the Psychiatry Education Forum Academy, Managing Anxiolytic & Hypnotic Adverse Events · Section 3 · Chapter 6.
Managing Anxiolytic & Hypnotic Adverse Events
The rest of the course applies the same rapid-decision format to the serious adverse effects of benzodiazepines, Z-drugs, orexin antagonists, gabapentinoids, propranolol and other anxiolytics and hypnotics: falls and delirium in older adults, complex sleep behaviors, next-day impairment, and more.
This chapter is educational material for licensed prescribers and prescribers in training. It is not a substitute for clinical judgment, local protocols, poison center advice or the current prescribing information. Do not stop a long-term benzodiazepine abruptly because of concern about dementia; any sudden confusion needs same-day assessment. Psychiatry Education Forum Academy is not a CME provider and this chapter does not carry CME credit.
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