Table 1. Characteristics of included cohort studies.
| Study name | Mean age/ M to F ratio | F/u period (years) | Definition of BDZ use | BDZ Class and Components | BDZ use assessment | Dementia assessment | Study population (BDZ users/ non BDZ users) | Total dementia cases (BDZ users/ non BDZ users) | NOS quality rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shash et al. 20169 (France) | 73 (0.25) | 8 | • Prevalent use was defined as any report of BDZ use at baseline | All classes of benzodiazepines and their derivative drugs, including anxiolytic, hypnotic and sedative antiepileptic, and myorelaxants | Patient reported | Medical records | 7,130 (1,246/5,884) | 647 (151/496) | 7 |
| • Incident use was defined as BDZ use during the study | |||||||||
| • Long half-life BDZ-t1/2 >20 hrs | |||||||||
| Gray et al. 20168 (USA) | 74 (NR) | 7.3 | • Ever exposure to BDZ (any) | 1) BDZs-temazepam, diazepam, clonazepam, triazolam, lorazepam, alprazolam, flurazepam, oxazepam, chlordiazepoxide, clorazepate | Computerized pharmacy data | Clinician | 3,434 (NA/NA) | 797 (NA/NA | 8 |
| • At each time point during F/u, the cumulative exposure to BDZ is calculated by summing all BDZ use in the previous 10 years | 2) Non-BDZ hypnotics-zolpidem, eszopiclone, zaleplon | ||||||||
| • Categorized further based on cumulative use as no use, 1–30, 31–120, or ≥121 (long term intake) TSDDs | |||||||||
| Gallacher et al. 20122 (UK) | 61 (All subjects are males) | 22 | • Ever exposure to BDZ (any) | BDZ | Medical record | Clinician | 1,188 (103/1,085) | 93 (22/71) | 6 |
| • Long term intake defined as >4 years of BDZ use | |||||||||
| Billioti de Gage et al. 20126 (France) | 72 (0.89) | 15 | • New BDZ users defined as subjects without declared BDZ use at baseline to 3 years and declared BDZ use between 3 and 5 year | Alprazolam,bromazepam, chlordiazepoxide, clobazam, clonazepam, clorazepate, clotiazepam, diazepam, estazolam, flunitrazepam, loflazepate, loprazolam, lormetazepam, nitrazepam, nordazepam, prazepam, oxazepam, temazepam, tetrazepam, tofizopam, triazolam, zolpidem, and zopiclone | Patient reported | Clinician | 1,063 (95/968) | 253 (30/223) | 7 |
| • Non users are defined as subjects without any declared use of BDZ at all 5 years from start of study |
BDZ: benzodiazepine, F: female, F/u: follow-up, M: male, NA: nor applicable, NOS: New Castle Ottawa Scale, NR: not rated, TSSDs: total standardized daily doses.