Benzodiazepine Use Disorder Research Dashboard
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As a subscriber, you will be able to access dashboard insights including chemotype overviews and dosing summaries for medical conditions and organ system and receptor breakdowns for cannabinoid and terpene searches. Study lists present important guidance including dosing and chemotype information with the ability to drill down to the published material. And all outputs are fully filterable, to help find just the information you need. Stay up-to-date with the science of cannabis and the endocannabinoid system with CannaKeys.
CannaKeys has 41 studies associated with Benzodiazepine Use Disorder.
Here is a small sampling of Benzodiazepine Use Disorder studies by title:
- Association Between Prenatal Cannabis Use and Psychotropic Medication Use in Pregnant Patients With Depression and Anxiety
- Preclinical Assessment of the Abuse Potential of Purified Botanical Cannabidiol: Self-Administration, Drug Discrimination, and Physical Dependence
- Perioperative Cannabis as a Potential Solution for Reducing Opioid and Benzodiazepine Dependence
- Cannabidiol and mental health: possibilities, uncertainties, and controversies for addiction treatment
- Reduction of Benzodiazepine Use in Patients Prescribed Medical Cannabis
Components of the Benzodiazepine Use Disorder Research Dashboard
- Dosing information available for Benzodiazepine Use Disorder
- Chemotype guidance for treating Benzodiazepine Use Disorder with cannabis
- Synopsis of cannabis research for Benzodiazepine Use Disorder
- Individual study details for Benzodiazepine Use Disorder
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Overview - Benzodiazepine Use Disorder
Description of Benzodiazepine Use Disorder
Benzodiazepines are a class of psychoactive pharmaceuticals commonly prescribed to treat anxiety, insomnia, alcohol withdrawal symptoms (e.g., delirium tremors), or panic attacks.
“Benzos,” sometimes called in everyday vocabulary, have sedative, sleep-inducing (hypnotic), relaxant, and mood-improving properties.
Excessive dosages and long-term use can have serious adverse effects. Excessive dosages can cause confusion, memory loss, dizziness, low blood pressure, reduced respiratory rates, addiction, increased risky or pathological behavior, overdose, and death.
The potency of the benzodiazepine type is directly related to the risk of developing benzodiazepine use disorder. Reviews of available trials, epidemiological studies, clinical expert opinions, and interviews with people suffering from benzodiazepine use disorder suggest that diazepam, lorazepam, and alprazolam tend to present a relatively higher risk of abuse potential, while oxazepam, for instance, presented with a lower one.
For practitioners, it is essential to note that benzodiazepines should always be tapered on a case-by-case basis to prevent severe or potentially life-threatening withdrawal. In addition, a physician should closely supervise the use of cannabis or cannabinoid-based therapeutics to reduce benzodiazepine use.
Disease Classification
Condition: Addiction - BenzodiazepineDisease Family: Addiction
Organ System: Mental/Emotional System, Nervous System
ICD-10 Chapter: Mental, Behavioral and Neurodevelopmental disorders
ICD-10 Code: F13
Benzodiazepine Use Disorder Symptoms:
Classic physical and mental-emotional withdrawal symptoms such as ataxia (unsteady gait), tremors, confusion, dysphoria, tachycardia, sleep disturbances, muscle twitching, dizziness, hallucinations. In severe withdrawal cases, altered mental status, seizures, and even fatality can result from benzodiazepine withdrawal.Also known as:
Benzodiazepine dependence, Benzodiazepine abuse, Valium use disorder, Benzo addiction, sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic related disorders, substance use disorder.Drug Interactions
THC Interaction with Pharmaceutical Drugs
- Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can enhance the effects of drugs that cause sedation and depress the central nervous system, such as benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and alcohol.
- THC is metabolized by an inhibitor of several enzymatic liver pathways referred to as cytochrome P450 (aka CYP450). There are more than 50 enzymes belonging to this enzyme family, several of which are responsible for the breakdown of common drugs such as antidepressants (e.g., amitriptyline, doxepin, fluvoxamine), antipsychotics (haloperidol, clozapine, Stelazine), beta-blockers (e.g., propranolol), bronchodilators (e.g., theophylline), or blood thinners (e.g., warfarin). Thus, patients taking these medication classes may find that THC increases the concentration and effects of these drugs and the impact duration.
- Clinical observation (not yet confirmed by clinical trials) suggests no likely interactions with other pharmaceuticals at a total daily dose of up to 20mg THC.
If you are interested in the interaction potential of specific pharmaceuticals with THC, consider visiting these free drug interaction checkers: Drugs.com or DrugBank Online.
CBD Interaction with Pharmaceutical Drugs
- Cannabidiol (CBD) may alter the action of metabolic enzymes (specific drug-transport mechanisms) and alter interactions with other drugs, some of which may produce therapeutic or adverse effects. For instance, CBD interacts with the enzyme cytochrome P450 3A4 and cytochrome P450 2C19, increasing the bioavailability of anti-epileptic drugs such as clobazam (a benzodiazepine). This makes it possible to achieve the same results at significantly lower dosages, reducing treatment costs and risks of adverse effects.
- Groups of drugs affected include anti-epileptics, psychiatric drugs, and drugs affecting metabolic enzymes.
- Clinical observations (not yet confirmed by clinical trials) suggest no likely interactions with other pharmaceuticals at a total daily dose of up to 100mg CBD.
If you are interested in the interaction potential of specific pharmaceuticals with CBD, consider visiting these free drug interaction checkers: Drugs.com or DrugBank Online.
THC/CBD Interaction with Pharmaceutical Drugs
In general, when using cannabinoid-based therapeutics that contain both THC and CBD consider the ratio between them and weigh the relevant information displayed in the individual THC and CBD Drug Interaction windows accordingly.
If you are interested in the interaction potential of specific pharmaceuticals with both primary cannabinoids and THC/CBD, consider visiting these free drug interaction checkers: Drugs.com or DrugBank Online.
Concerns about Cannabis and Cancer-related Immunotherapies:
Some recent clinical observational studies have suggested that the co-administration of cannabinoid-based therapeutics and immunotherapy or immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of certain types of cancer has been associated with worse overall survival rates (T. Taha et al., 2019; A. Biedny et al., 2020; G. Bar-Sela et al., 2020).
However, other studies have suggested that the co-commitment use of immune checkpoint inhibitors and cannabis-induced no such deleterious effects. More specifically, one trial was conducted on animals resulting in data suggesting that cannabis did not negatively affect the properties of immune checkpoint inhibitors (B. Waissengrin et al., 2023). The same authors compared the previous study results with findings from a cohort of 201 patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who received treatment with monotherapy pembrolizumab as a first-line treatment and adjunct cannabis to treat mainly pain and loss of appetite. Their time to tumor progression was 6.1 versus 5.6 months, and overall survival differed between 54.9 versus 23.6 months in cannabis-naïve patients and cannabis-using patients, respectively. However, while numerically different, the authors write that these differences were not statistically significant, leading them to suggest that “These data provide reassurance regarding the absence of a deleterious effect of cannabis in this clinical setting.”
Dosing Considerations
THC Dosage Considerations
- THC micro dose: 0.1 mg to 0.4 mg
- THC low dose: 0.5 mg to 5 mg
- THC medium dose: 6 mg to 20 mg
- THC high dose: 21 mg to 50+ mg
CBD Dosage Considerations
- CBD low dose: 0.4 mg to 19 mg
- CBD medium dose: 20 mg to 99 mg
- CBD high dose: 100 mg to 800+ mg (upper limits tested ~1,500mg)
Disclaimer
Information on this site is provided for informational purposes only and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your own licensed physician or other medical professional. You
should not use the information contained herein for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease. If using a product, you should read carefully all product packaging. If you have or suspect that you have a
medical problem, promptly contact your health care provider.
Information on this site is based on scientific studies (human, animal, or in vitro), clinical experience, or traditional usage as cited in each article. The results reported may not necessarily occur in all individuals. For many of the conditions discussed, treatment with prescription or over-the-counter medication is also available. Consult your physician, nutritionally oriented health care practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications.
