Glutethimide
chemical compound
Glutethimide (brand names included Doriden, Elrodorm, and Noxyron) is a central nervous system (CNS) depressant drug of the piperidine chemical class, one of many non-barbiturate, "barbiturate-like" GABAergic medications exhibiting general calming, relaxing, or "tranquilizing" properties in addition to relieving anxiety and promoting sleep. As such, "nerve pills" or "sleeping pills" were common vernacular descriptions of these types of medications.
History
Glutethimide was developed Ciba Specialty Chemicals in 1954, and approved for medical use in the United States by the U.S. FDA in 1957. It was indicated for treating insomnia, and branded Doriden by Ciba. Generic trade names that followed included Elrodorm and Noxyron. Following the passage of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 in the U.S., followed by the creation of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) in 1973, the "war on drugs" began to prioritize the criminalization of combination drugs containing controlled substances.
The DEA declared glutethimide to be as habit-forming and addicting as barbiturates and other highly-regulated CNS depressants such as Quaalude and Placidyl. Abrupt cessation of this substance can result in rebound effects similar to those in withdrawal from any GABAergic substance, including alcohol, barbiturates and benzodiazepines.
Chemical composition and synthesis
The (R) isomer has a faster onset of action and more potent anticonvulsant activity in animal models than the (S) isomer.
The base catalyzed conjugate addition of 2-phenylbutyronitrile [769-68-6] (1) to ethyl acrylate (2) gives ethyl 4-cyano-4-phenylhexanoate, CID:139890735 (3).
“Glutethimide” enters the record as chemical compound. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Glutethimide, chemical and compound can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 4, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q414236. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1954, 1957, 1970 and 1973.
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This entry incorporates text from “Glutethimide” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.