The first indications of drug abuse were reported within a matter of weeks of Mandrax reaching the market, but due to the widespread abuse of barbiturates they went largely unnoticed. Now the drug is perhaps only second to Mogadon (nitrazepan) as a non-barbiturate sedative/hypnotic in the large quantities prescribed. There are however good reasons why this particular drug combination ought to b...

Rearing is an exploratory behavior induced by novelty, such as exposure to an open field. Stimulation of certain brain regions, including the hippocampus, induces both rearing and clonic convulsions. Brain excitability is controlled by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) inhibitory neurotransmission through its ionotropic GABAA/allosteric benzodiazepine site. Drugs that decrease GABAA receptor fast ...

Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are widely available drugs. In the adult population, the prevalence of daily use of anxiolytic drugs is 4%, and the prevalence of daily use of hypnotics is 1.7%, according to a Spanish survey conducted in 2011 [1]. This is due to their anxiolytic, sedative, and hypnotic properties, and also because they have shown to have a broad-spectrum activity, a rapid onset of action...

The hypnotic and residual sedative effects of the first and seventh of seven regular night-time doses of nitrazepam 5 mg, temazepam 20 mg, and placebo were studied in 58 elderly inpatients. Plasma temazepam and nitrazepam concentrations rose by about 50% and 113% respectively between the mornings of day 1 and day 7. Patients reported sleeping well more often after the first dose of either hypno...

Current pharmacological treatment of insomnia involves the use of sedative-hypnotic benzodiazepine and non-benzodiazepine drugs. Although benzodiazepines improve sleep, their multiple adverse effects hamper their application. Adverse effects include impairment of memory and cognitive functions, next-day hangover and dependence. Non-benzodiazepines are effective for initiating sleep but are not ...

The present work offers an analysis of the historical development of the discovery and use of barbiturates in the field of psychiatry and neurology, a century after their clinical introduction. Beginning with the synthesis of malonylurea by von Baeyer in 1864, and up to the decline of barbiturate therapy in the 1960s, it describes the discovery of the sedative properties of barbital, by von Mer...

Methagoalone, a relatively new sedative hypnotic dmg in the United States, has unique prop& which make the handling of overdosage somewhat different from the stnndard procedures. We report the case of a 20-y&d woman who ingested a large quantity of the drug and required ambat ion and artificial ventilation during the c o w of her recovery. The paper recounts the &tells of thb treatxwnt and revi...

This study was performed to investigate the sedative-hypnotic activity of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-enriched fermented marine organisms (FMO), including sea tangle (FST) and oyster (FO) by Lactobacillus brevis BJ20 (L. brevis BJ20). FST and FO were tested for their binding activity of the GABAA-benzodiazepine and 5-HT2C receptors, which are well-known molecular targets for sleep aids. We also ...