Methylphenobarbital (also known as mephobarbital) is marketed in the US as Mebaral by Ovation. Methylphenobarbital is used as a sedative, anxiolytic and anticonvulsant. It is the N-methylated analogue of phenobarbital, and has similar indications, theraputic value, and tolerability. CAS registry numbers are unique numerical identifiers for chemical compounds, polymers, biological sequences and alloys. ... The Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical Classification System is used for the classification of drugs. ... A section of the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical Classification System. ... A chemical formula (also called molecular formula) is a concise way of expressing information about the atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound. ... The molecular mass of a substance (less accurately called molecular weight and abbreviated as MW) is the mass of one molecule of that substance, relative to the unified atomic mass unit u (equal to 1/12 the mass of one atom of carbon-12). ... In pharmacology, bioavailability is used to describe the fraction of an administered dose of medication that reaches the systemic circulation, one of the principal pharmacokinetic properties of drugs. ... The elimination half-life of a drug (or any xenobiotic agent) refers to the timecourse necessary for the quantity of the xenobiotic agent in the body (or plasma concentration) to be reduced to half of its original level through various elimination processes. ... Excretion is the biological process by which an organism chemically separates waste products from its body. ... The pregnancy category of a pharmaceutical agent is an assessment of the risk of fetal injury due to the pharmaceutical, if it is used as directed by the mother. ... The regulation of therapeutic goods, that is drugs and therapeutic devices, varies by jurisdiction. ... A sedative is a drug that depresses the central nervous system (CNS), which causes calmness, relaxation, reduction of anxiety, sleepiness, slowed breathing, slurred speech, staggering gait, poor judgment, and slow, uncertain reflexes. ... An anxiolytic is any drug or therapy used in the treatment of anxiety. ... The anticonvulsants, sometimes also called antiepileptics, belong to a diverse group of pharmaceuticals used in prevention of the occurrence of epileptic seizures. ... Phenobarbital (also phenobarbitone or Luminal) is a weak acid with the chemical formula C12H12N2O3. ...

Approval History

• 1935 Mebaral was introduced by Winthrop Pharmaceuticals.
• 2001 Methylphenobarbital discontinued in the UK.
• 2003 Mebaral acquired by Ovation Pharmaceuticals (specialty pharmaceutical company who acquire underpromoted branded pharmaceutical products).

References

• The Treatment of Epilepsy 2nd Ed by S. D. Shorvon (Editor), David R. Fish (Editor), Emilio Perucca (Editor), W. Edwin Dodson (Editor). Published by Blackwell 2004. ISBN: 0632060468