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Sleep aid's rare side effects gain attention

Anecdotes about nocturnal noshing and driving while dozing after taking a sleeping pill have physicians considering what needs to be communicated to patients.

By Victoria Stagg Elliott, amednews staff. April 10, 2006.

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In the past week, Donna E. Sweet, MD, has had to take the unusual step of assessing several of her insomniac patients for weight gain or other signs they might be eating, driving, walking or engaging in other behavior unbeknownst to them in the night.

The reason is a series of articles published in The New York Times and picked up worldwide about Ambien (zolpidem tartrate). The pieces, published in March, focused on people taking Ambien and gaining large amounts of weight because of uncontrolled nighttime eating and driving while under the influence of this drug.

In the wake of this attention, Dr. Sweet and others have faced a wave of patient concern and have had to contemplate how to warn those prescribed this drug of these possibilities.

"People need to take it right," said Dr. Sweet, an internist and professor of medicine at the University of Kansas School of Medicine. "You should not be taking it with alcohol, and it's not designed for a patient to take it and then wander around."

According to a statement issued by Sanofi-Aventis, the drug's manufacturer, Ambien is safe and effective when taken as directed.

The article centered on sleep-driving was based on increasing concerns of government agencies, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about the growing number of vehicle crashes involving this drug. The story about sleep-eating was based on a study of more than 30 cases gathered by researchers at the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center in Minneapolis.