Many hearts were broken on Sunday, October 1, 2017 where Stephen Paddock brutally killed 58 people and injured 489 in Las Vegas, going down as the worst mass shooting in American history. The FBI and police are still trying to investigate what his motive was, they looked at his health records to see if there was any mental instability, they checked terrorist ties but came up short. However one thing did catch their eye and it was that he was taking prescription medication by the name of Valium for a diagnosis of anxiety.
This raises the question whether a benzodiazepine such as Valium and many others can make someone conduct such an evil act. It was believed that the Valium was prescribed a year and a half ago with a total quantity of 60 with only 10-15 pills remaining. It is not known how long ago Stephen took the Valium before he went on a shooting rampage and personally I think this act was conducted out of just pure evil. But why not discuss Valium and see if it could have the potential to make someone do such an atrocious act.
There are many warnings attributed with Valium that manufactures emphasize in their package inserts and this includes what we call paradoxical reactions. These paradoxical reactions include hyperactivity, aggressiveness, hallucinations and psychosis. However such reactions have been reported mostly in susceptible populations such as the pediatric and elderly populations. However Stephen Paddock was close to the age of 65 which is generally accepted as the definition of “elderly”.
It is also important to note that Valium, also known as diazepam, when metabolized in the body forms 3 active metabolites which are nordiazepam, temazepam and oxazepam. If kidney function is slightly poor, these active metabolites may stay for a long duration in the body causing side effects such as aggression, hallucinations and more.
Also when it comes to anxiety, the use of benzodiazepines is actually second-line and should only be used on a short-term basis for approximately 2-4 weeks. The first-line agent to use for anxiety are antidepressants such as fluoxetine or sertraline which can be used on a long-term basis. Unfortunately, this event highlights the issue of how easily benzodiazepines are prescribed for anxiety during long periods of time, which can ultimately create issues such as dependency and severe adverse effects. In fact, diazepam carries a higher risk of drug dependence because it is very lipophilic and can stay in the body for long periods of time.
In addition, benzodiazepines should never be discontinued abruptly. If a patient has been on a benzodiazpine such as Valium for longer than 4 weeks, they need to be slowly tapered over a number of weeks or months depending how long they have been on it. If they are not slowly tapered they have a risk of withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, irritability, depression, hallucinations, seizures and more
Overall I’m not saying that Valium is behind this horrific act, but this does help bring attention to the impact drugs such as Valium can cause and how inappropriately they are being prescribed in America.
–Ms Rx Geek
Kgrant