Triazolam
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Triazolam.png
chemical structure of triazolam
Triazolam (Halcion®, Novodorm®, Songar®) belongs to benzodiazepine group of drugs. It is commonly prescribed for insomnia, and its short half-life (approximately 3 hours) makes it ideal for this use because it thereby avoids morning drowsiness.
Questions exist about its safety because it has a fairly narrow therapeutic window. Also, some have suggested that it causes hallucinations, amnesia, paranoia and verbal and physical aggression.
Halcion belongs to the Pregnancy Category X of the FDA. This means that it is known to cause birth defects in the unborn baby. On October 2, 1991, the Committee on the Safety of Medicines (CSM) banned sales of Triazolam in the UK after concluding that it had a higher frequency of psychiatric side-effects than other hypnotics (sleeping pills). Internationally, triazolam is a Schedule IV drug under the Convention on Psychotropic Substances[1] (http://www.incb.org/pdf/e/list/green.pdf).
External links
- Extensive information about Halcion (http://www.mentalhealth.com/drug/p30-h01.html)
- Newsweek August 19, 1991 - Sweet Dreams or Nightmare? Halcion controversy (http://www.injustice.org/nemo/newsfile/nk910819.html)
- Triazolam - Medlineplus.org (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a684004.html)
- Presidential Halcion use (http://www.spedro.com/nf_bush.html)
- Halcion Fact Sheet (http://www.duchs.com/information/Halcion)