Just nod if you can hear me... is there anyone home?

[Robert F]

Zolpidem (Ambien), a widely prescribed sleep aid has been found to elicit positive effects in the semi-conscious and even the comatose, by way of its interactions on GABA receptors, which scientists believe to have a huge role in brain injury. This being said, I would like to supplement the following information to perhaps inspire evidence based practice amongst fellow practitioners.

How Zolpidem Works
YouTube - Sleep Aid: Ambien


Official Research

Evidence for Zolpidem efficacy in Brain Damage

Drug induced arousal from the permanent vegetative...[NeuroRehabilitation. 2006] - PubMed Result

Extraordinary arousal from semi-comatose state on zolpidem: case report


In The Media

Sleeping pill may rouse coma patients - health - 24 May 2006 - New Scientist

Sleeping pill Zolpidem awakens girl from coma - Telegraph

I am trying to get the medical school to allow me to put together a research team to present before the ethics board of the hospital a proposal to begin our own longitudinal study of this occurence within our NeuroScience unit, led by our NeuroSurgeons and Scientists of course. We would further like to incorporate Zolpidem with TMS to demonstrate or disprove the efficacy of these therapies in brain injury.

Attached file used with Permission.