Diazepam: Medical Uses, Pharmacology & Health Effects

Since their introduction to the market in the 1960s, benzodiazepines, and among them diazepam, have become one of the most frequently prescribed psychotropic drugs in industrial countries. These compounds are known for their sedative, hypnotic, anxiolytic, muscle-relaxant and anticonvulsant properties and their large therapeutic index. In this book, the authors present current research in the study of the medical uses, pharmacology and health effects of diazepam. Topics discussed include the consequences of early chronic exposure to diazepam on brain plasticity, cerebral functionality and behaviour; diazepam use in anxiolytic animal therapy; the diazepam-like effects of medicinal plants; using zebrafish modelling as the foundation of research into the mechanisms of depression and diazepam usage; and the principal indications related to the molecular actions and advantages of diazepam.