Of 86 alcoholic men with severe alcohol withdrawal who began a double-
blind controlled study comparing carbamazepine, 800 mg/day, to oxazepam,
120 mg/day, 66 (carbamazepine, N = 32; oxazepam, N = 34) completed the
7-day trial. In general, the drugs were found to be equally efficacious in
treating the withdrawal syndrome and not significantly different with
respect to side effects. The subjects taking oxazepam had an increase in
global psychological distress from day 3 to day 7, and those taking
carbamazepine exhibited a decline. The study suggests that carbamazepine is
as effective and safe as benzodiazepine treatment for alcohol
withdrawal.
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