Barbiturate

Last edited and medically reviewed by Alaric Steinmetz on 24.07.2023

The effect of barbiturates is based, among other things, on binding to GABA-A receptors. Barbiturates such as thiopental or pentobarbital are used in neurocritical care for the treatment of intracranial hypertension¹.

Neuroprotective effects

Reduces CBF, CMR0_{2</sub>, and ICP²}
Reduces MAP³
Raises the seizure threshold⁴

Barbiturate coma

The term "barbiturate coma" refers to high-dose barbiturate therapy characterized by burst suppression on the EEG⁵. In this state, CBF and CMRO_{2</sub> are reduced to a maximum extent⁶.}

References

Handbook of Neurosurgery. Greenberg M, ed. 9th Edition. New York: Thieme; 2019 ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩
Flower, Oliver, and Simon Hellings. "Sedation in traumatic brain injury." Emergency medicine international 2012 (2012). ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩
Bullock R, Chesnut RM, Clifton G, et al. Guidelines for the Management of Severe Head Injury. 1995 ↩ ↩