Ambien(Zolpidem)

Ambien(Zolpidem)The drug should be taken orally once a day before sleep. The dosages are as follows:

• For patients under the age of 65- 1 pill (if necessary, the daily dosage can be increased to 1.5–2 pills).

• For patients over the age of 65- initial single dose is 1/2 of a pill, and maximum dose is 1 pill.

The treatment course shouldn’t last more than 4 weeks.

Possible side effects

• confusion,

• memory impairment,

• blurry vision,

• nightmares,

• drowsiness,

• headache,

• vertigo,

• abnormal gait,

• agitation;

• stomach pain,

• sickness,

• vomiting,

• diarrhea;

• skin rash,

• itching;

• addiction (in case of long-term use).

Special instructions

Patients with respiratory and liver failure should be very careful when taking the drug. During the treatment, you should avoid engaging in the potentially dangerous activities that require a high level of concentration (driving or working with mechanisms/at a height). The drug can enhance the effect of other CNS depressants.

If the patient keeps suffering from insomnia after 7-14 days of treatment, his/her condition should be reevaluated. Usually, such paradoxical reaction is a consequence of primary mental health disorders.

During the treatment of Ambien, you should refrain from driving or engaging in activities that require a high level of concentration.

Some people (especially elderly patients) can develop unusual mental reactions and behavioral disorders. In this case, the treatment should be stopped immediately.

In patients with liver diseases, the main active substance can accumulate in the body and lead to undesirable consequences.

Elderly patients should take the drug with caution, as they are at a high risk of developing muscle relaxant and sedative effect, which leads to falls and traumas.

During pregnancy and lactation  Ambien(Zolpidem)

The effect of the drug on pregnant women has not been studied. However, studies in rats have shown that Ambien has a teratogenic action. Therefore, this drug is not recommended for pregnant women.

In addition, Ambien can pass into breast milk (in small amounts). Therefore, women should stop breastfeeding during the treatment.

Clinical picture of Ambien poisoning    Ambien(Zolpidem)

The use of high doses of Ambien can cause such adverse effects as sickness, vomiting, headache, vertigo, confusion, anterograde amnesia and faintness. Ambien prolongs stages III and IV of sleep and rarely causes tolerance, rebound insomnia and addiction. However, there is not enough data on the long-term abuse of and tolerance to Ambien. According to some patients, Ambien can cause chronic abuse, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms and hallucinations.

Two patients have reported psychotic symptoms, which started 30 minutes after the intake of 10 mg of Ambien. This state lasted less than 30 minutes. After waking up, patients didn’t remember what had happened.

Overdose

The most common consequences of overdose are coma, miosis and respiratory depression. Patients may also observe drowsiness, vertigo and vomiting. In one patient, oral intake of 39 pills of Ambien didn’t cause coma, even though he received help only 6 hours later. Patients also noticed tremor in the hands, extremities and perioral region, muscle cramps, myoclonus, double vision, stomach and abdominal pain and difficulty swallowing. The drug withdrawal can lead to epileptic seizures.