Overall, the use of flumazenil to manage benzodiazepine overdose is diminishing as the drug may cause more harm than good. A few patients may develop rhabdomyolysis and aspiration pneumonia. In most isolated cases of benzodiazepine overdose, supportive management may prove useful. The problem arises when the individual has co-ingested alcohol or other illicit drugs. In general, patients who overdose on benzodiazepines alone rarely have significant mortality. The nurse and the pharmacist should educate the patient on the use of benzodiazepines, their potential to cause addiction, and physical dependence. The ideal circumstance for flumazenil is when a naive benzodiazepine individual has overdosed.
Additionally, all healthcare workers need to know that this drug should not be used in patients with a history of seizures, head injury, or those who have ingested a tricyclic antidepressant. The drug may precipitate seizures and withdrawal in patients who have been using benzodiazepines for a medical disorder. Not everyone with benzodiazepine overdose will respond to it. The problem with flumazenil is that its effects are not consistent or predictable. Despite the initial hype about the drug, many experts believe that its risks may outweigh its benefits. This competitive antagonist of benzodiazepines can rapidly reverse benzodiazepine overdose. Today, with the epidemic of drug overdoses, nurses, pharmacists, and physicians need to be aware of flumazenil.
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