Diagnosis and Management of Depressant Drug Dependence
JOHN A. EWING M.D., D.P.M.1, and
WILLIAM E. BAKEWELL M.D., C.M.2
1 Professor and Chairman Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N. C. 27514
2 Assistant Professor, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N. C. 27514
Patients who are dependent on a depressant drug, or combinations of them, are being seen quite regularly in hospital psychiatric practice. After discussing epidemiology, etiology, and diagnosis, the authors emphasize the importance of differentiating between the toxic effects of overdosage and the abstinence syndrome. The latter is best treated in the hospital, with drug requirements being determined by a test dose of pentobarbital. Thereafter a withdrawal regime over a ten-day period avoids serious complications.
