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,...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Jacob D. King
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press
Series:BJPsych Bulletin
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2056469424001086/type/journal_article
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
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.
ISSN:2056-4694
2056-4708