The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of two commonly used medications in the treatment of alcohol withdrawal, diazepam and lorazepam.
Despite the frequent use of benzodiazepines for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal, studies comparing the efficacy of long and short half-life benzodiazepines in the treatment of alcohol withdrawal have shown mixed results. Due to the conflicting nature of published reports, clinicians have no clear indication as to which type of agent is preferable. The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of two commonly accepted medications in the treatment of alcohol withdrawal, diazepam and lorazepam, which are long and short half-life benzodiazepines, respectively.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
55
Lorazepam 1 to 2 mg by mouth or intravenously every two hours as needed for alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Diazepam 20 mg by mouth every two hours x 3 doses, or for parenteral treatment, diazepam 10 mg intravenously every one hour x 6 doses. Give additional diazepam 10 mg by mouth or intravenously every two hours as needed for alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Hospital System
Palo Alto, California, United States
Stanford Hospital and Clinics
Stanford, California, United States
The primary outcome measures include serial measures of vital signs and scores on the Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol-Revised scale (CIWA-Ar), a widely used scale that monitors alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Time frame: one to two weeks
Secondary outcome measures include total benzodiazepine use.
Time frame: one to two weeks
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