Common sleeping pills may be responsible for a massively increased risk from pneumonia, researchers warned today.
About 10% of the elderly population have taken benzodiazepine pills for longer than 12 months – and across the population about 2% of people are users.
But, according to the latest analysis published in the journal Thoraxi, this increases the risk of succumbing to pneumonia by more than half – and also increases their odds of dying from it.
The findings come from a study of nearly 5,000 pneumonia patients compared with another 30,000 people of the same sex and similar age from their own neighbourhoods.
Researcher Dr Robert Sanders, of University College London, UK, found that three drugs, diazepam, lorazepam and temazepam, were linked with increased pneumonia risk.
And once they fall ill, these patients face an increased risk of dying compared with patients who have not used the sedatives, Dr Sanders reports.
The researchers write: "Benzodiazepines and zopiclone are commonly prescribed medications that have significant immune effects.
"Given the widespread use of benzodiazepine drugs, further studies are required to evaluate their safety in the context of infection."
The impact of benzodiazepines on occurrence of pneumonia and mortality from pneumonia: a nested case-control and survival analysis in a population cohort. Thorax December 6 2012; doi 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2012-202374
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