The effect of benzodiazepine withdrawal on the dexamethasone suppression test

Abstract

Recent studies of the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) suggest lack of specificity for the diagnosis of melancholia. An earlier study showed that high doses of benzodiazepines lead to DST normalisation in depressed patients. This present study examines the effect of benzodiazepine withdrawal on the DST in a middle aged, non-depressed group. Forty-eight volunteers from a double blind placebo-controlled trial of triazolam 0.5 mg and lormetazepam 2 mg all suppressed normally when given the DST on the sixth day of withdrawal following 25 days of drug.