A white odorless barbiturate, C12H18N2O3, used in the form of its sodium salt as a sedative and hypnotic.
[SECO(NDARY) + BARBITAL.]
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A white odorless barbiturate, C12H18N2O3, used in the form of its sodium salt as a sedative and hypnotic.
[SECO(NDARY) + BARBITAL.]
Brand names: Seconal®
Secobarbital capsules
What are secobarbital capsules?
SECOBARBITAL (Seconal®) is a barbiturate that slows down activity of the brain and nervous system. Secobarbital has sedative and hypnotic properties, which will help make you feel relaxed and sleepy when used before surgery. For short periods of 2 weeks or less, secobarbital can help treat insomnia (difficulty sleeping). Federal law prohibits the transfer of secobarbital to any person other than the patient for whom it was prescribed. Generic secobarbital capsules are not available.What should I tell my health care provider before I take this medicine?
They need to know if you have any of these conditions:How should I take this medicine?
Take secobarbital capsules by mouth. Follow the directions on the prescription label. Swallow the capsules with a drink of water. If secobarbital upsets your stomach, take it with food or milk. Take your doses at regular intervals. Do not take your medicine more often than directed.What if I miss a dose?
If you are on a regular schedule and miss a dose, take it as soon as you can. If it is almost time for your next dose, take only that dose. Do not take double or extra doses.What drug(s) may interact with secobarbital?
alcoholWhat should I watch for while taking secobarbital?
Visit your prescriber or health care professional for regular checks on your progress. If you have been taking secobarbital regularly and suddenly stop taking it, you may increase the risk of seizures. Your prescriber or health care professional may want to gradually reduce the dose. Do not stop taking except on your prescriber's advice. If sleep medicine is taken every night for a long time it may no longer help you to sleep. In general secobarbital should not be taken for longer than 1 or 2 weeks as a sleep aid. Consult your prescriber or health care professional if you still have difficulty in sleeping.What side effects may I notice from taking secobarbital?
Side effects that you should report to your prescriber or health care professional as soon as possible:Where can I keep my medicine?
Keep out of the reach of children in a container that small children cannot open.Last updated: 7/1/2002
Important Disclaimer: The drug information provided here is for educational purposes only. It is intended to supplement, not substitute for, the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a medical professional. This drug information does not cover all possible uses, precautions, side effects and interactions. It should not be construed to indicate that this or any drug is safe for you. Consult your medical professional for guidance before using any prescription or over the counter drugs.
A short- to intermediate-acting oxybarbiturate, used for sedation and anesthesia. Called also quinalbarbitone.
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Secobarbital
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| Systematic (IUPAC) name | |
| 5-(1-methylbutyl)-5-prop-2-enyl- hexahydropyrimidine-2,4,6-trione |
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| Identifiers | |
| CAS number | |
| ATC code | N05 |
| PubChem | |
| DrugBank | |
| Chemical data | |
| Formula | C12H18N2O3 |
| Mol. mass | 238.283 |
| Pharmacokinetic data | |
| Bioavailability | ? |
| Metabolism | Hepatic |
| Half life | ? |
| Excretion | Renal |
| Therapeutic considerations | |
| Pregnancy cat. |
D (USA) |
| Legal status | |
| Routes | Oral |
Secobarbital (marketed by Eli Lilly and Company under the brand names Seconal® and Tuinal) is a barbiturate derivative drug. It possesses anaesthetic, anticonvulsant, sedative and hypnotic properties. In the United Kingdom, it was known as Quinalbarbitone.
Secobarbital is indicated for:
It is available as either a free acid or a sodium salt. The free acid is a white amorphous powder that is slightly soluble in water and very soluble in ethanol. The salt is a white hygroscopic powder that is soluble in water and ethanol.
The sodium salt of secobarbital is classified separately from the free acid, as follows:
Side effects of secobarbital include:
Secobarbital is a fairly addictive drug, and withdrawal symptoms can occur if long-term usage is abruptly ended. Withdrawal symptoms can include:
Secobarbital began to be widely abused in the 1960s and 1970s, although with the advent of benzodiazepines, they have become less commonly used.
Secobarbital has acquired many nicknames, the most common being "reds", or "red dillies" (it was originally packaged in red capsules). Another common nickname is "seccies". A less common nickname is "dolls"; this was partly responsible for the title of Jacqueline Susann's novel Valley of the Dolls, whose main characters use secobarbital and other such drugs.
Another popular brand of barbiturate pill Tuinal contained a combination of secobarbital and amobarbital but is now rarely prescribed due to problems with abuse and overdose.
Two days after his wife died from cancer in 1978, Charles Boyer committed suicide with an overdose of Seconal.
Bartley Crum was the attorney for some of the so-called "Hollywood Ten" who were subpoenaed to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947. The FBI tapped Crum's phones, opened his mail, and shadowed him constantly. Labeled as subversive, he ended up losing most of his clients and, unable to cope with stress from the harassment, committed suicide in 1959 by washing down an entire bottle of Seconal with whisky.
Judy Garland, of "The Wizard of Oz" fame, was found dead in her bathroom by her husband Mickey Deans on June 22, 1969. The stated exact cause of death by coroner Gavin Thursdon was accidental overdose of barbiturates; her blood contained the equivalent of 10 1.5-grain Seconal capsules.[1]
Secobarbital played a role in the September 18, 1970 death of legendary rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix, who purportedly took nine Secobarbital tablets after a night of drinking wine and was later found dead in his London apartment. Hendrix' death was caused by asphyxiation, after Hendrix presumably vomited in his sleep as a result of the mixture of the excessive Secobarbital dose and alcohol.
Anissa Jones' fatal overdose was of a combination of cocaine, PCP, Methaqualone, and Seconal. The San Diego County coroner said it was one of the most severe cases of drug overdose ever seen in San Diego County.
On July 5, 1948, Carole Landis committed suicide by taking an overdose of Seconal in her Brentwood Heights, California home.
In March 2007, an LA-based Australian writer and director named Philippe Mora uncovered previously-classified government documents regarding Marilyn Monroe's death. These documents, in turn, cited Seconal as Monroe's barbiturate of choice for her alleged suicide.
Alejandra Pizarnik, an Argentine poetess, reportedly died, in 1972 at the age of 36, from a self-induced overdose of seconal.
Secobarbital overdose was the most common method of implementing physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in Oregon until Eli Lilly and Company discontinued manufacturing it in May 2001, leading to a shortage of the drug. Since then, pentobarbital has dominated in Oregon PAS. Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited have experienced approval issues in their attempts to produce 100 mg secobarbital capsules, but there is no longer a shortage as of October 2006.
It is a component in the veterinary drug Somulose, used for euthanasia of horses and cattle.
| Barbiturates (N01AF, N03AA, N05CA) |
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Allobarbital • Amobarbital • Aprobarbital • Alphenal • Barbexaclone • Barbital • Brallobarbital • Butabarbital • Butalbital • Butobarbital • Butallylonal • Crotylbarbital • Cyclobarbital • Cyclopal • Ethallobarbital • Febarbamate • Hexethal • Heptabarbital • Hexobarbital • Mephobarbital • Metharbital • Methohexital • Methylphenobarbital • Narcobarbital • Pentobarbital • Phenobarbital • Probarbital • Propallylonal • Proxibarbal • Proxibarbital • Reposal • Secbutabarbital • Secobarbital • Talbutal • Thialbarbital • Thiamylal • Thiobarbital • Thiobutabarbital • Thiopental • Valofane • Vinbarbital • Vinylbital |
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