Barbiturates
barbitwradauBarbiturates are a group of drugs which used to be regularly prescribed for anxiety, depression, and insomnia. They have now almost entirely been replaced by benzodiazepines and zopiclone due to the risk of dependence and overdose death.
Barbiturates used to be a regular feature of the UK drugs scene and were heavily associated with dependence, overdose death and when taken with alcohol with violent behaviour. The long-acting barbiturate phenobarbital is still sometimes prescribed in epilepsy and the very short-acting barbiturate thiopental sodium is sometimes used in anaesthesia, but because there is very little prescribing and no illicitly made varieties, little is seen of barbiturates as street drugs these days. Barbiturates are Class B under the Misuse of Drugs Act.
