Abstract Barbiturates are powerful depressants of the central nervous system and, like other such drugs, they are misused in various ways by maladjusted people - in suicidal attempts, to reinforce the effects of alcohol, and as antidotes for stimulants of the central nervous system. When taken over a long period and in large amounts, they lead to an addiction with, upon withdrawal, a specific abstinence syndrome. When taken over a long period and in large amounts, they lead to an addiction with, upon withdrawal, a specific abstinence syndrome. The neurological signs in acute and chronic barbiturate intoxication include nystagmus, dysarthria, and ataxia in gait and station.
People intoxicated with barbiturates are obviously a threat to themselves and society.
Until 1928 barbiturates were thought not to be addiction-producing, but Pohlisch described in that year the abstinence syndrome after withdrawal of barbiturates. This was confirmed later on, and Seevers and Tatum, for instance, observed convulsions following withdrawal of sodium barbital from chronically intoxicated dogs. By now the clinical symptomatology of this form of addiction has been fully described. A case of death clue to abstinence from barbiturates has been reported. In cases of daily consumption of 0,6 g of the above-mentioned barbiturates, the more severe symptoms rarely occur, and if the addict has been consuming only 0.4 g daily only minor disturbances appear.