Promethazine is not a good option to aid sleep quality, especially for people using psychiatric services
Promethazine, a sedating antihistamine, is widely and increasingly prescribed for patients reporting problems sleeping. In this Against the Stream article, the case is made that promethazine is not suitable as a sleep aid for people using mental health services, because it has no good evidence base,...
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Cambridge University Press
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Series: | BJPsych Bulletin |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2056469424001086/type/journal_article |
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Summary: | Promethazine, a sedating antihistamine, is widely and increasingly prescribed for patients reporting problems sleeping. In this Against the Stream article, the case is made that promethazine is not suitable as a sleep aid for people using mental health services, because it has no good evidence base, impedes with psychological and behavioural techniques that do improve sleep in the medium-long term, has underappreciated addictive and recreational-use potential, and an unacceptable side-effect profile. Alternatives to promethazine are described, notably the NICE first-line recommendation, cognitive–behavioural therapy for insomnia. |
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ISSN: | 2056-4694 2056-4708 |