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What is Phenobarbital?

Category: Prescription Drugs

Most popular types: Phenobarbitalum Luminal

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Phenobarbital, a barbiturate, is used to control epilepsy (seizures) and as a sedative to relieve anxiety. It is also used for short-term treatment of insomnia to help you fall asleep.

See patients taking Phenobarbital

Reported purpose & perceived effectiveness
Purpose Patients Evaluations Perceived Effectiveness
Epilepsy 84 41
Seizures 24 3
Seizures (simple partial) 11 4
Seizures (grand mal or tonic-clonic) 3 2
Anxious mood 1 0
Excessive daytime sleepiness (somnolence) 1 0

Show all 16 reasons taken

  • Major
  • Moderate
  • Slight
  • None
  • Can't tell
See all 282 patients that have taken Phenobarbital

Side effects

Side effects as an overall problem

Side effects as an overall problem
Severity Evaluations Percentage
Severe 9
Moderate 13
Mild 13
None 14

Commonly reported side effects and conditions associated with Phenobarbital

Side effect Patients Percentage
Drowsiness 5
Sleepiness 4
Tiredness 4
Dizziness 2
Excessive daytime sleepiness (somnolence) 2
Problems concentrating 2

Show all 21 reported side effects

Why patients stopped taking Phenobarbital

Multiple reasons could be selected

Reason Patients Percentage
Doctor's advice 21
Did not seem to work 18
Side effects too severe 14
Other 5
Course of treatment ended 4
Change in health plan coverage 2
Expense 1
Personal research 1
See all 40 patients who've stopped taking Phenobarbital

Duration

Stopped taking Phenobarbital

Duration Patients Percentage
Less than 1 month 4
1 - 6 months 6
6 months - 1 year 1
1 - 2 years 1
2 - 5 years 11
5 - 10 years 6
10 years or more 10
Adherence
Adherence Evaluations Percentage
Always 42
Usually 7
Sometimes 0
Never taken as prescribed 0
Burden
Burden Evaluations Percentage
Very hard to take 2
Somewhat hard to take 3
A little hard to take 8
Not at all hard to take 36
Cost per month
Cost per month Evaluations Percentage
$200+ 0
$100-199 0
$50-99 0
$25-49 1
< $25 35
Not specified 13

What people switch to and from

Patients started taking Phenobarbital after stopping:

Treatment Patients Percentage
Carbamazepine (Tegretol) 1
Phenytoin (Dilantin) 1

Patients stopped taking Phenobarbital and switched to:

Treatment Patients Percentage
Carbamazepine (Tegretol) 6
Phenytoin (Dilantin) 4
Divalproex sodium (Depakote) 2
Ethosuximide (Zarontin) 1
Gabapentin (Neurontin) 1

Show all 6 treatments patients report switching to

Last updated:

4 patient evaluations for Phenobarbital

Sort by: Most recent

Nov 28, 2010 (Started Jan 10, 2010)

  • Effectiveness
    Can't tell (for epilepsy)
  • Side effects
    Mild (dizziness)
  • Adherence
    Always
  • Burden
    Not at all hard to take
Dosage: 2.5 other Daily
Advice & Tips: Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Phasellus faucibus turpis sed mi maximus mattis.
Cost: < $25 monthly
Side effects: dizziness
  • 0 helpful marks

May 4, 2010 (Started Jul 25, 1989)

  • Effectiveness
    Major (for epilepsy)
  • Side effects
    Mild (sleepiness)
  • Adherence
    Always
  • Burden
    Not at all hard to take
Dosage: 200 mg Daily
Advice & Tips: Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Phasellus faucibus turpis sed mi maximus mattis.
Cost: < $25 monthly
Side effects: sleepiness
  • 0 helpful marks

Apr 12, 2009 (Started Jan 01, 1984)

  • Effectiveness
    Moderate (for epilepsy)
  • Side effects
    Moderate (excessive daytime sleepiness (somnolence))
  • Adherence
    Always
  • Burden
    Not at all hard to take
Dosage: 120 mg Daily
Cost: < $25 monthly
Side effects: excessive daytime sleepiness (somnolence)
  • 0 helpful marks
Last updated:
Showing 3 of 4 patient evaluations for Phenobarbital