Benzodiazepines have also been linked to an increased risk of road traffic accidents and falls in the elderly. The long-term effects of benzodiazepines are still not fully understood. Long-term benzodiazepine use is associated with attentional and visuospatial functional impairments. Withdrawal from benzodiazepines can lead to improved alertness and decreased forgetfulness in the elderly. Withdrawal led to statistically significant improvements in memory function and performance-related skills in those having withdrawn successfully from benzodiazepines, whereas those having remained on benzodiazepines experienced worsening symptoms. People having withdrawn from benzodiazepines also felt their sleep was more refreshing, making statements such as "I feel sharper when I wake up" or "I feel better, more awake", or "It used to take me an hour to fully wake up." This suggests that benzodiazepines may actually make insomnia worse in the elderly. Cause
Tolerance occurs to the muscle-relaxant, anticonvulsant, and sleep-inducing effects of benzodiazepines, and upon cessation a benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome occurs. This can lead to benzodiazepines being taken for longer than originally intended, as people continue to take the drugs over a long period of time to suppress withdrawal symptoms. Some people use benzodiazepines at very high doses and devote a lot of time to doing so, satisfying the diagnostic criteria in DSM V for substance use disorder. Another group of people include those on low to moderate therapeutic doses of benzodiazepines who do not use their benzodiazepines differently than recommended by their prescriber but develop a physical tolerance and benzodiazepine dependence.
A survey of doctors in Senegal found that many doctors feel that their training and knowledge of benzodiazepines is, in general, poor; a study in Dakar found that almost one-fifth of doctors ignored prescribing guidelines regarding short-term use of benzodiazepines, and almost three-quarters of doctors regarded their training and knowledge of benzodiazepines to be inadequate. More training regarding benzodiazepines has been recommended for doctors. Due to the serious concerns of addiction, national governments were recommended to urgently seek to raise knowledge via training about the addictive nature of benzodiazepines and appropriate prescribing of benzodiazepines.A six-year study on 51 Vietnam veterans who had a substance use disorder related mainly to stimulants (11 people), opiates (26 people), or benzodiazepines (14 people) was carried out to assess psychiatric symptoms related to the specific substances. After six years, people who used opiates had little change in psychiatric symptomatology; five of the people who used stimulants developed psychosis, and eight of the people who used benzodiazepine developed depression. Therefore, long-term benzodiazepine use and dependence seems to carry a negative effect on mental health, with a significant risk of causing depression. Benzodiazepines are also sometimes taken intra-nasally when not recommended for use this way by their prescriber.In the elderly, alcohol and benzodiazepines are the most commonly used addictive substances, and the elderly population is more susceptible to benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome and delirium than are younger patients. See also
Long-term effects of benzodiazepines
Alcohol withdrawal syndrome
Long-term effects of alcohol consumption
SSRI discontinuation syndrome
Drug related crime

References
External links

Benzodiazepine dependence at Curlie