Electronic Self-Help Intervention Aids Benzodiazepine Cessation: Study
A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that individuals using a self-administered electronic intervention had a much higher chance of stopping benzodiazepines entirely when compared to patients getting standard therapy.
Long-term use of benzodiazepines increases the risk of dependency, falls, and cognitive deterioration. A prior study shown that a patient-centered self-management strategy (Eliminating Medications Through Patient Ownership of End Results; EMPOWER) can lower the dangers associated with long-term benzodiazepine dependency. Thus, once the intervention was converted from printed to electronic format, this investigation was carried out to confirm the results of the EMPOWER experiment.
The US Veterans Health Administration primary care clinics in two Veterans Affairs health care systems participated in this study with a 6-month follow-up. 161 primary care patients with access to a smartphone, tablet, or desktop computer who had been using benzodiazepines for three months or more were among the participants.
Participants were randomly assigned to either the electronically administered EMPOWER (EMPOWER-ED) treatment or to continue using benzodiazepines in accordance with doctor advice. Complete benzodiazepine discontinuation and at least a 25% dosage decrease at the 6-month follow-up, as determined by pharmacy data, were preregistered main outcomes. Self-reported anxiety symptoms, sleep quality, and general health and quality of life were secondary outcomes. An intent-to-treat analysis was carried out.
The majority of the 161 participants (134 [83.2%]) were men, with a mean (SD) age of 61.9 (13.7) years. Complete benzodiazepine cessation was substantially more likely for those in the EMPOWER-ED group (odds ratio [OR], 5.31 [95% CI, 1.12-25.12]). When comparing the EMPOWER-ED group to the control group, there was no chance of at least a 25% dosage decrease (OR, 2.51 [95% CI, 0.91-6.90]). For the secondary outcomes, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups.
Overall, the findings of this research found a significant impact of a low-cost, self-administered intervention for lowering benzodiazepine usage among long-term users in this randomized clinical study. Risks associated with benzodiazepines are still common and inadequately addressed in the medical system. This is the second randomized clinical study (after the initial EMPOWER trial13) to show that this public health issue may be resolved without incurring significant expenses.
Source:
Humphreys, K., Hagedorn, H., Han, X., Kemp, L., Poitra, N., & Cucciare, M. A. (2026). Electronic intervention for patient-managed benzodiazepine tapering: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Network Open, 9(1), e2551807. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.51807
