Use of benzodiazepine medications in the Brazilian Unified Health System

This database contains information on the dispensing of benzodiazepine medications in thirteen healthcare units of the Unified Health System in a region of the city of São Paulo, Brazil (a region with a population of over 250,000 inhabitants). It contains quantitative data on users, medications and healthcare units, collected over a period of three months. The data comes from thirteen health units.
The objective of the study was to characterize the use and users of benzodiazepine medications, in addition to identifying irrational and abusive use of these medications.
The information contained in the database was collected from the municipal medication control and dispensing system. In order to collect this information, access authorization was required from the city's health management, in addition to approval of the study by two research ethics committees.
The system provides information on all medication withdrawals, including sensitive patient information that was coded in order to preserve their confidentiality and privacy.
The research identified high consumption of benzodiazepines in this region by users of the public health system.