Swedish company doctors' attitudes to benzodiazepines and neuroleptics used as minor tranquillizers.

A survey was carried out among 150 Swedish company doctors to assess their attitudes towards 2 benzodiazepines and 4 neuroleptics widely used as minor tranquillizers. The participants rated their opinions on 6 drug characteristics considered important when prescribing anxiolytics. The profile for the two benzodiazepines, diazepam and oxazepam, showed that whilst these drugs were regarded as having a greater anxiolytic effect than the neuroleptics they were also considered as having a higher amount of negative effects compared to the neuroleptics as a hole. The neuroleptics had a more varied profile than the benzodiazepines. Two of the neuroleptics, flupenthixol and especially fluphenazine, had a more favourable profile than the other two, dixyrazine and thioridazine, being regarded as having a greater anxiolytic effect without a greater amount of negative effects. The more favourable profiles for flupenthixol and fluphenazine are probably an indication that these two drugs are used with satisfactory results in special clinical situations when it is more important to avoid possible side-effects.