Chlorpromazine

High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Chlorpromazine (as chlorpromazine hydrochloride, abbreviated CPZ, marketed in the US as Thorazine, as Largactil in Europe) is the oldest typical antipsychotic. The molecular structure is 2-chloro-10-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-phenothiazine. Chlorpromazine effectively treats schizophrenia, severe mania in people with bipolar disorder, and uncontrollable hiccups. Synthesized on December 11, 1950, chlorpromazine was the first drug developed with specific antipsychotic action. Its use has been described as the single biggest advance in psychiatric treatment, dramatically improving the prognosis of patients in psychiatric hospitals worldwide. It was the prototype for the phenothiazine class, which later grew to comprise several other agents. It is now used less commonly than the newer atypical antipsychotics such as olanzapine, quetiapine, and risperidone. Chlorpromazine works on a variety of receptors in the central nervous system, producing anticholinergic, antidopaminergic, antihistaminic, and antiadrenergic effects. Its anticholinergic properties cause constipation, sedation, hypotension and relieve nausea. It also has anxiolytic (anxiety-relieving) properties. Its antidopaminergic properties can cause extrapyramidal symptoms such as akathisia (restlessness), dystonia, and Parkinsonism. Chlorpromazine can cause tardive dyskinesia, which is sometimes irreversible.