Summary:
An overview of the chemical Sodium Thiopental, also known as Pentothal. Used during World War II both as treatment for soldiers with amputated limbs and as a truth serum, this chemical is used today in anesthesia, surgery, and as a means through which to carry out the death penalty against criminals.
Anesthesia is a very powerful drug. It is usually used for medical reasons. Anesthesia causes unconsciousness which makes you feel less or no pain at all. Anesthesia is given to a patient in two different ways. It is either inhaled in a gas form, or injected with a needle. Anesthetics usually use intravenous injections because they are less painful, faster, and more reliable. Some of the intravenous injections include ketamine, etomidate, and thiopental.
Sodium Thiopental, or Pentothal, was discovered by Ernest H. Volwiler and Donalee L. Tabern in 1936. Pentothal is a yellow crystal that dissolves in water. It also usually smells somewhat like garlic. Its structural name is sodium 5-ethyl-5-(1-methylbutyl)-2-thiobarbiturate, empirically it is NaSC11H17O2N2. Although it has many uses now, it was originally used to help numb patients in surgeries.
Thiopental works very quickly and has no painkiller in it. This makes it perfect for quick surgeries. It causes the patient to completely lose consciousness within 60 seconds of the injection. After the patient is asleep, it can last between 10-30 minutes. When you are given anesthesia, the nurse or doctor will usually ask you to count backwards from 100. Anesthesia is so strong you usually only make it to about 95 before you doze off.
Pentothal has other medical uses besides operations. It helps control convulsions (seizures) caused by seizure disorders or seizures caused by medicine. Pentothal also reduces the pain and pressure in the brain in some conditions. Doctors have also recently started to use Pentothal to treat some mental disorders.
In surgical uses, the dose of Pentothal should be between 100 mg and 150 mg. Anything over that can cause serious side affects including death. The deadly amount of Sodium Thiopental is 5,000 mg or 5 grams.
In 38 US states, the death penalty is used. In 34 of those 38 they use lethal injections as a primary death penalty. In 1972, execution punishments were outlawed by the US government. They stated that it was "cruel and unusual punishment." The United States of America decided to start to look for a more humane way to use the death penalty.
One of the first methods they came up with was the lethal injection. Scientists studied a paralyzing agent called Pancuronium Bromide. It slowly paralyzed and killed its victims. If lethal injections were going to use a paralyzing agent, they needed to have a drug to numb the pain. Scientists decided the right anesthetic drug would be Sodium Thiopental, which by itself is already a lethal injection if overdosed.
When a lethal injection was scheduled, the victim was strapped to a table. Then the Pentothal was injected with a needle. Next a saline solution was used. A few minutes later, the paralyzing agent, Pancuronium Bromide, was injected. This was followed by a quick injection of some more saline solution. Last, a toxic agent was injected. This was not used in all states, but a lot do use it. The toxic agent, potassium
chloride, is given in a lethal dose. It causes the electric signaling to the heart to stop, which causes a cardiac arrest.
A team of executioners stand behind a curtain. They each have a tube connected to an IV. They all pump the drugs into the victim on the warden's signal. None of the executioners know who has the lethal injection. After about 2 minutes after the last drug is pumped into the victim, a surgeon checks the inmate to see if he is dead.
Sodium Thiopental can also be very addictive. Many people become addicted to Sodium Thiopental and use it for bad things. A lot of suicides are caused from overdoses or addictions to Pentothal.
They also cause accidental deaths. A patient that was prescribed some Pentothal may take a dose, and when they are half-asleep forget and take some more. This is one of the theories of what happened to Marilyn Monroe. Barbiturates, the type of anesthesia Pentothal is, were thought to have caused Marilyn Monroe's death.
In WWII, Sodium Thiopental had a very big use. At first it was used to treat soldiers who had to have limbs amputated. It's most famous WWII incident was when it caused the accidental killing of many soldiers in Pearl Harbor. Because it was a new drug, many nurses and doctors were anxious to try it on wounded soldiers. Because little was known about the drug, many soldiers were given an overdose and died.
In WWII, it was also used as a "truth" serum. A doctor would administer a very small dose of Thiopental. It would cause the patient to become relaxed. An officer would then ask the patient questions about secrets and plans of the war. The patient would then tell everything because he was in such a relaxed and relieved state. It was a kind of hypnosis.
Sodium Thiopental is also used in veterinary operations. It calms down large animals. A small dose from a tranquillizer helps inject Pentothal. This would allow a doctor or veterinarian to quickly examine an animal. Some animals this is used on include elephants and horses.
Sodium Thiopental also calms an animal that is being shipped from one place to another. Many animals that are shipped to a new zoo are given Pentothal or some other kind of anesthesia. Without that, it would be much harder to transport animals. Imagine trying to ship an awake elephant across the world!
Pentothal can also be used as a radio protective agent. This means it is able to be a drug that decreases the effect of radiation. If radiation is used on healthy, new body tissue, it causes reactions. When the radiation comes in contact with a cell that is freely moving, it bonds with the cell and eliminates it from the molecule. Sodium Thiopental works by bonding with the molecule and then keeping all radiation from paring with free cells.
Lots of radiation is bad for your body. Many people endure a lot of radiation due to a disease (like cancer), or broken bones. Without Sodium Thiopental, or some kind of radiation protecting agent, there would be no hope for people who have had lethal amounts of radiation.
Pentothal has complications for overdoses or irregular schedule of when you are taking it. Most of the complications cause respiratory problems. It has the potential for producing respiratory depression. It also has caused laryngospasm, a medical issue where you become unable to catch your breath. Sodium Thiopental can also cause heart and vein problems. Some of these include myocardial depression and minor heart attacks.
When injecting Sodium Thiopental, doctors have to be sure that the needle is within the lumen of the vein. If this does not happen, extra vascular infiltration may occur. This causes chemical irritation to the vein and tissue. A doctor must also watch out for Intra-arterial injection. It causes severe pain along the artery that was struck. The most minor complications include shivering, twitching face muscles, and tremors of arms and legs.
Pentothal contains no bacteriostatic material so it must be handled with care to prevent bacteria buildup. Sterilization should not be done through heating. Doctors at Abbot Labs say that unused portions of Pentothal should be discarded within 24 hours.
The stability of Sodium Thiopental depends on the diluent, the temperature of storage, and the amount of carbon dioxide in the storage area. This will help insure that the Pentothal is safe to use.
Although the complications are bad, the uses of Pentothal are very important. They range from lethal injections to truth serums. Without Sodium Thiopental, operations would be much more different too. Short procedures would be much more risky due to longer anesthetic periods. Also, the transportation of large animals would be very difficult if they were awake. That is why Anesthetic Sodium Thiopental (Pentothal) is important.
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