Many people in Tennessee and around the country are prescribed medications by a doctor to treat insomnia, anxiety and depression. And while many of these prescription medications surely help a person to function in life, researchers recently found a connection between taking certain types of medications and having an increased risk of getting into a car accident.
Of course this isn't to say anyone should stop taking their medications. Rather the risks and concerns are just something that could be discussed with a doctor.
The study specifically looked at Z-drugs, which get their name as a number of the components in the drugs start with the letter z. Some common brand names of Z-drugs include Lunesta, Sonata and Ambien.
For the study, researchers compared two groups of people, those who had been in motor vehicle accidents and those with no record of being in an accident. From there it was discovered that those drivers who were taking psychotrophic drugs were more likely to get into an accident.
The length of time did not seem to matter either as the risk was increased whether the driver was taking the prescription medications for just one day, an entire week or a month.
It was also discovered that the higher the dosage, the higher the chance of getting into an accident.
This research was similar to prior studies that found a correlation between an increased risk of getting into accidents and drivers taking benzodiazepines.
With this most recent study, researchers plan on suggesting to doctors that people not drive while taking certain medications.
