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Injurious falls among older patients often occur in the middle of the night. In this study, conducted in a sleep laboratory, researchers examined whether the commonly prescribed hypnotic drug zolpidem (Ambien and generics) impairs balance and cognition when sleep is interrupted.
Eleven younger (mean age, 22) and 12 older (mean age, 67) participants all received 5-mg bedtime doses of zolpidem on one occasion and placebo on another occasion, in random order. After 2 hours of sleep, participants were awakened and asked to perform tandem walking on a balance beam; stepping off the beam was deemed a failed test. One young adult failed the balance test after placebo, and three failed after zolpidem. No older adults failed the balance test after pl…