Zolpidem dependence in Delusional Parasitosis- A case report

Objective To describe the occurrence of zolpidem dependence in a woman with Delusional parasitosis.Clinical features An 83 year old woman presented with a belief that insects were crawling over her face, sleeplessness, restlessness and increased consumption of sleeping pills on her own for sleep for three years.Intervention and outcome For her complaints she was treated with steroids and zolpidem. Initially her sleep pattern improved but gradually it resulted in consumption of higher doses of zolpidem for sleeplessness. Restlessness and irritability in the absence of the drug.Conclusion The finding of zolpidem dependence in a case of delusional parasitosis raises a question whether distress produced by the above mentioned case could lead to secondary substance dependence. This question needs to be addressed by future research