Ambien Wakes Coma Patients

Several instances of partial or significant recovery from coma or vegetative state have been published in the last year, which were caused by the administration of Ambien. The commonly prescribed sleeping pill (Zolpidem) was featured in a BBC documentary aired in October 2007, entitled “The Waking Pill.”

It is thought that Ambien may activate receptions in the brain which are usually reserved for the neuro-transmitter gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA). Researchers believe that brain injury may alter GABA receptors, causing regions of the brain to remain dormant. They speculate that Ambien could possibly temporarily reverse this change. Several patients have undergone PET scans to show the increase level of activity in the brain following the administration of Ambien, and such activity was indeed shown.