Phenobarbital

Phenobarbital is a long-acting barbiturate used mainly to control seizures and, less often, as a sedative. It can cause dependence and dangerous respiratory depression.

GABA-A receptor: A ligand-gated chloride channel that mediates much of the brain’s fast inhibitory signaling. Phenobarbital enhances this receptor’s response to GABA, reducing neuronal excitability.
Epilepsy: A neurological disorder characterized by an enduring predisposition to unprovoked seizures. Phenobarbital is an antiseizure medicine used to treat epilepsy.
Benzodiazepine: A class of drugs that enhance GABA-A receptor signaling and are used for anxiety, insomnia, and seizures. Benzodiazepines are generally preferred over barbiturates for many sedative uses because they have a wider safety margin.
Cytochrome P450: A family of enzymes that metabolize many drugs and other chemicals. Phenobarbital induces several of these enzymes, altering the levels of many co-administered medicines.
Emil Fischer: A German chemist who won the 1902 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for research on sugars and purines. Fischer helped synthesize barbiturates, the chemical family that includes phenobarbital.
Barbiturate: A class of central nervous system depressants derived from barbituric acid. Phenobarbital is a long-acting member of this drug class.
Neonatal seizures: Seizures occurring during the first 28 days after birth. Phenobarbital remains a commonly used initial treatment for neonatal seizures.
Levetiracetam: An antiseizure medicine that binds synaptic vesicle protein SV2A and reduces seizure activity. It is a common alternative antiseizure drug without phenobarbital’s enzyme-inducing effects.
Drug interaction: A change in a drug’s effects or concentration caused by another drug, food, or substance. Phenobarbital’s enzyme induction can weaken treatments including hormonal contraceptives and anticoagulants.
Joseph von Mering: A German physician known for research on drug effects and metabolism. Von Mering collaborated with Fischer in the early development of barbiturate medicines.

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