The Benzodiazepine withdrawal symptom questionnaire (BWSQ)

Reference number 7994

Sectors: Medical research, Research tools

Industries: Pharmaceuticals

A well-established, validated and widely-used self-assessment scoring system used in a number of clinical trials involving benzodiazepines.

Technology overview

Benzodiazepines are a large family of psychoactive drugs used in treating a range of conditions including anxiety, insomnia, seizures, substance withdrawal and can also be administered prior to certain medical or dental procedures to induce amnesia or anaesthesia. Examples of common benzodiazepines include: diazepam (Valium), alprazolam (Xanax), lorazepam (Ativan), temazepam (Restoril), clonazepam (Klonopin) and triazolam (Halcion).

A major concern for patients who have been administered benzodiazepines is the development of adverse symptoms (Benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome) when the drug is withdrawn, both physical and psychological. In clinical trials, the FDA guidelines require adverse events to be reported by the sponsor, so a means of assessing withdrawal symptoms in participants who have been administered benzodiazepines is necessary.

Benefits

  • The leading tool for assessing benzodiazepine withdrawal symptoms
  • Simple enough for patients to self-administer
  • Validated by use in multiple clinical trials, for over 20 years

Contact us about this technology



Contact

Dr Emily Allen-Benton

Industry Partnerships and Commercialisation Executive, Medicine

Emily is an IPC Executive within the Faculty of Medicine team focussed on intellectual property management, supporting Imperial academics with commercial engagement, fostering collaborative research and negotiating out-licenses. Emily manages an IP portfolio which included the Faculty of Medicine Quicktech portfolio, comprising mouse models and other research tools. Emily holds a PhD in Chemistry focussed on the sub-field of Synthetic Biology and has prior experience in the scientific publishing industry.

Contact Emily

[email protected]

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