Perfil farmacoterapêutico do Zolpidem

Abstract

Zolpidem is a drug with hypnotic properties that belongs to the class of imidazopyridines, acting on sleep control centers differently from benzodiazepines. Due to its good sleep induction and maintenance profile, drugs containing this activity have been widely used as a short-term treatment for insomnia. The objective of the present study was to analyze the pharmacotherapeutic profile of Zolpidem, this analysis is necessary since, although there are numerous reports of adverse events occurring after Zolpidem administration, there are few empirical studies documenting the experiences and clarifying the possible causes and solutions. Issues related to the risk of toxicity, main adverse effects reported by users, and possible drug interactions from both the use of therapeutic doses and the use of abusive doses were addressed, since the drug in question, in addition to being prescribed for short-term treatment term of insomnia, it is also commonly used as an anxiolytic. This is a bibliographic review of scientific articles published in Portuguese, English, and Spanish, selected from pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria, using the main research platforms for the selection of scientific articles. Zolpidem's toxicity, adverse effects, and drug interactions were discussed based on a thorough analysis of events involving the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of this drug in the human body. During the development of the work, it can be noted that, even though it is a widely prescribed and used drug, there is still little information about toxicity and drug interactions for many reports of adverse events, and there are also no campaigns aimed at the rational use of this drug. Therefore, the topic must be addressed more in campaigns for the rational use of psychotropic drugs and, above all, that more scientific works involving this subject be developed and published.