Dibunate is a

cough suppressant Cold medicines are a group of medicinal, medications taken individually or in Combination drug, combination as a Symptomatic treatment, treatment for the symptoms of the common cold and similar conditions of the upper respiratory tract. The ter ...

. As the sodium salt, it has been marketed under the name Becantyl (in the United Kingdom), Becantex (in continental Europe), or Linctussal with a dosage of 20 to 30 mg, as either syrup or tablets. Similar to

benzonatate Benzonatate (), sold under the brand name Tessalon among others, is a medication that is used for the symptomatic relief of cough. Benzonatate is taken oral administration, by mouth. Effects generally begin within 20minutes and last between 3 a ...

, it is a peripherally acting drug. It has not been reported to cause sedation, euphoria, habituation, or

respiratory depression Hypoventilation (also known as respiratory depression) occurs when ventilation is inadequate (''hypo'' meaning "below") to perform needed respiratory gas exchange. By definition it causes an increased concentration of carbon dioxide (hypercapni ...

, unlike narcotic antitussives such as

codeine Codeine is an opiate and prodrug of morphine mainly used to treat pain, coughing, and diarrhea. It is also commonly used as a recreational drug. It is found naturally in the sap of the opium poppy, ''Papaver somniferum''. It is typically use ...

. It may work by blocking afferent signals in the

reflex arc A reflex arc is a neural pathway that controls a reflex. In vertebrates, most sensory neurons synapse in the spinal cord and the signal then travels through it into the brain. This allows for faster reflex actions to occur by activating spinal mo ...

which controls cough. Nausea is rarely seen as an adverse effect.

References

Antitussives Sulfonic acids {{respiratory-system-drug-stub