Phenindamine (Nolahist, Thephorin) is an

antihistamine Antihistamines are drugs which treat allergic rhinitis, common cold, influenza, and other allergies. Typically, people take antihistamines as an inexpensive, generic (not patented) drug that can be bought without a prescription and provide ...

and

anticholinergic Anticholinergics (anticholinergic agents) are substances that block the action of the neurotransmitter called acetylcholine (ACh) at synapses in the central and peripheral nervous system. These agents inhibit the parasympathetic nervous sys ...

closely related to

cyproheptadine Cyproheptadine, sold under the brand name Periactin among others, is a first-generation antihistamine, first-generation antihistamine with additional anticholinergic, antiserotonergic, and local anesthetic properties. It was patented in 1959 an ...

. It was developed by

Hoffman-La Roche F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, commonly known as Roche, is a Swiss multinational healthcare company that operates worldwide under two divisions: Pharmaceuticals and Diagnostics. Its holding company, Roche Holding AG, has shares listed on the SIX ...

in the late 1940s. It is used to treat symptoms of the

common cold The common cold or the cold is a viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the respiratory mucosa of the nose, throat, sinuses, and larynx. Signs and symptoms may appear fewer than two days after expos ...

and

allergies Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, refer a number of conditions caused by the hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic dermat ...

, such as sneezing, itching, rashes, and

hives Hives, also known as urticaria, is a kind of skin rash with red, raised, itchy bumps. Hives may burn or sting. The patches of rash may appear on different body parts, with variable duration from minutes to days, and does not leave any long-last ...

. Its efficacy against some symptoms of opioid withdrawal was researched in the 1950s and 1960s in a number of countries; William S. Burroughs' book ''

Junkie Junkie is a pejorative usually referring to a person with an addiction. Entertainment and media * ''Junkie'' (novel), a novel by William S. Burroughs * "Junkie" (song), 2013 song by Medina featuring Svenstrup & Vendelboe * ''The Junkies'', a ...

'' mentions this technique. Like many other first-generation antihistamines, phenindamine has useful potentiating effects on many narcotic analgesics and is even more useful with those opioids which release histamine when in the body. Nolahist was originally manufactured in the US by Carnrick Laboratories, and later by Amarin Pharmaceuticals. When that company ceased its American operations, its product line was acquired by Valeant, but they declined to resume manufacturing Nolahist. The last produced lot bore an expiration date of 10/2005, and the product is no longer available. Phenindamine does exhibit

optical isomerism In chemistry, an enantiomer ( /ɪˈnænti.əmər, ɛ-, -oʊ-/ ''ih-NAN-tee-ə-mər''; from Ancient Greek ἐνάντιος ''(enántios)'' 'opposite', and μέρος ''(méros)'' 'part') – also called optical isomer, antipode, or optical anti ...

as do other chemicals of its general type ranging from

pethidine Pethidine, also known as meperidine and sold under the brand name Demerol among others, is a synthetic opioid pain medication of the phenylpiperidine class. Synthesized in 1938 as a potential anticholinergic agent by the German chemist Otto Eis ...

and

alphaprodine Prodine (trade names Prisilidine and Nisentil) is an opioid analgesic that is an analog of pethidine (meperidine). It was developed in Germany in the late 1940s. There are two isomers of the trans form of prodine, alphaprodine and betaprodine ...

to certain herbicides and other industrial chemicals; the. In the example at hand, the compound isophenidamine (60295-96-7 MSDS), which is inactive.

References

Abandoned drugs H1 receptor antagonists Muscarinic antagonists {{respiratory-system-drug-stub

See also

References