So, who knew that dimenhydrinate (Dramamine, Gravol) is actually two drugs?
A short drug history thread.
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A short drug history thread.
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The antihistamine diphenhydramine (Benadryl) was developed in 1940.
It was effective but very sedating, which is why itβs marketed even today as over-the-counter sleep aids like Nytol.
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It was effective but very sedating, which is why itβs marketed even today as over-the-counter sleep aids like Nytol.
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A few years later, a chemist named John Cusic working for G.D. Searle had an idea: overcome the sedation by combining diphenhydramine with a stimulant.
The stimulant he chose was 8-chlorotheophylline, a methylxanthine not that different from caffeine.
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The stimulant he chose was 8-chlorotheophylline, a methylxanthine not that different from caffeine.
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Dramamine's use for motion sickness was discovered serendipitously.
In 1947, doctors at Johns Hopkins gave it to a pregnant(!) woman with hives. Thereafter, she could ride the trolley without the motion sickness that plagued her for years.
hopkinsmedicine.org
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In 1947, doctors at Johns Hopkins gave it to a pregnant(!) woman with hives. Thereafter, she could ride the trolley without the motion sickness that plagued her for years.
hopkinsmedicine.org
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Hereβs the eventual patent for dimenhydrinate.
Cusic, who died in 1988, also developed propantheline (an early drug for ulcers) and the anti-arrhythmic disopyramide.
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Cusic, who died in 1988, also developed propantheline (an early drug for ulcers) and the anti-arrhythmic disopyramide.
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Anyway, the next time you give a patient 50 mg of Dramamine or Gravol, just know that you're actually giving about 27 mg of diphenhydramine and the rough equivalent of a small cup of weak coffee.
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