Phenobarbital
Phenobarbital, also known as phenobarbitone or phenobarb, is a medication of the barbiturate type. It is recommended by the World Health Organization for the treatment of certain types of epilepsy in developing countries. In the developed world, it is commonly used to treat seizures in young children, while other medications are generally used in older children and adults. Side effects include a decreased level of consciousness along with a decreased effort to breathe. There is concern about both abuse and withdrawal following long-term use, and it may also increase the risk of suicide.
About Phenobarbital in brief
Phenobarbital, also known as phenobarbitone or phenobarb, or by the trade name Luminal, is a medication of the barbiturate type. It is recommended by the World Health Organization for the treatment of certain types of epilepsy in developing countries. In the developed world, it is commonly used to treat seizures in young children, while other medications are generally used in older children and adults. It may be used intravenously, injected into a muscle, or taken by mouth. Side effects include a decreased level of consciousness along with a decreased effort to breathe. There is concern about both abuse and withdrawal following long-term use, and it may also increase the risk of suicide. It usually begins working within five minutes when used intravenous and half an hour when administered by mouth, and effects last for between four hours and two days. The first-line drugs for treatment of status epilepticus are benzodiazepines, such as lorazepam or diazepam. If these fail, then phenytoin may be use, with phenobarBital being an alternative in the US, but used only third-line in the UK. It can be used as a secondary agent to treat newborns with neonatal abstinence syndrome, a condition of exposure to opioid drugs in utero. In high purity dosage, it can also be used for lethal injection of lethal injection for infants suspected of neonatal biliary atresia, or liver cirrhosis of the liver.
In massive doses, phenobar bital is prescribed to terminally ill patients to allow them to end their life through physician-assisted suicide. Sedative and anti-convulsant properties can effectively reduce tremors and seizures associated with abrupt withdrawal from Benzodiazepine withdrawal. Phenobarbitals is a cytochrome P450 inducer, and is used to reduce the toxicity of some drugs. It’s the least expensive anti-seizure medication at around US$5 a year in the developing world, but access may be difficult as some countries label it as a controlled drug. It was discovered in 1912 and is the oldest still commonly used anti- sezure medication. It has a relatively low active half-life, meaning for some people doses do not have to be taken every day, particularly once the dose has been stabilized over a period of several weeks or months, and seizures are effectively controlled. The only treatment for neonatal seizures is anaesthesia in intensive care, but there is no reliable evidence to support this approach. In people with Crigler–Najjar syndrome, type II, or in patients with Gilbert’s syndrome, the drug is used in low doses to aid in the conjugation of bilirubin in people with crigler najjar syndrome type II. It is a commonly used agent in preparation for a 99mT-T-IDA study that differentiates hepatitis or cholestasis.
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This page is based on the article Phenobarbital published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 29, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
