An anticonvulsant that is used to treat a wide variety of seizures. It is also an anti-arrhythmic and a muscle relaxant. The mechanism of therapeutic action is not clear, although several cellular actions have been described including effects on ion channels, active transport, and general membrane stabilization. The mechanism of its muscle relaxant effect appears to involve a reduction in the sensitivity of muscle spindles to stretch. Phenytoin has been proposed for several other therapeutic uses, but its use has been limited by its many adverse effects and interactions with other drugs.
Agents that control agitated psychotic behavior, alleviate acute psychotic states, reduce psychotic symptoms, and exert a quieting effect. They are used in SCHIZOPHRENIA; senile dementia; transient psychosis following surgery; or MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION; etc. These drugs are often referred to as neuroleptics alluding to the tendency to produce neurological side effects, but not all antipsychotics are likely to produce such effects. Many of these drugs may also be effective against nausea, emesis, and pruritus.
Body builds determined on the basis of certain physical characteristics of body shape and BODY COMPOSITION. A somatotyping appraisal is a composite rating of the three basic body types: ectomorph (thin physique), endomorph (rounded physique), and mesomorph (athletic physique).
Chemical substances, excreted by an organism into the environment, that elicit behavioral or physiological responses from other organisms of the same species. Perception of these chemical signals may be olfactory or by contact.
