Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 20, 2026

Construction of Vapor Chambers Used to Expose Mice to Alcohol During the Equivalent of all Three Trimesters of Human Development
Published on: July 13, 2014
An Exploration of Alcohol Withdrawal Protocols, with a Focus on the Use of Phenobarbital
Amy Suhotliv1, Veronika Blinder2, Amira Mohamed2
1From the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York.
Objective:
Severe alcohol withdrawal (SAW) is a common cause of hospital admission in the United States. There has been increased interest in phenobarbital use for SAW treatment. We aimed to investigate variability in alcohol withdrawal management protocols at different hospitals within a geographic region, with a focus on phenobarbital use.
Methods:
We e-mailed a survey to intensive care unit physician leadership to all New York City acute care hospitals as well as large acute care hospitals in Massachusetts regarding their protocols for SAW.
Results:
Of 13 respondents, eight have SAW protocols, six of whom have a distinct phenobarbital protocol. Phenobarbital load locations were in the emergency department or intensive care unit. Loading doses ranged from 8 to 15 mg/kg. Three protocols recommended an oral/intramuscular phenobarbital taper, and two protocols specified as needed phenobarbital rescue doses on hospital wards. There was some overlap in other rescue medications, but frequency and dose were not specified. Only two respondents of the survey included benzodiazepines as a rescue medication option.
Conclusions:
There is some evidence that phenobarbital use for SAW has comparable to improved efficacy in certain patient outcomes. It appears that current evidence may have led to the adoption of phenobarbital use in SAW protocols in several urban university hospitals. Our results demonstrate, however, that there is significant irregularity in dosing, tapers, and concomitant benzodiazepine use. Phenobarbital protocols for SAW are common among large urban hospitals, but protocols are not standardized. More research and interhospital collaboration should be undertaken to reduce variability and optimize treatment protocols.
More Related Videos
05:12Chronic Intermittent Ethanol Vapor Exposure Paired with Two-Bottle Choice to Model Alcohol Use Disorder
Published on: June 23, 2023
19:57The Use of Trace Eyeblink Classical Conditioning to Assess Hippocampal Dysfunction in a Rat Model of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Published on: August 5, 2017
Related Concept Videos
Sedatives and Hypnotics Drugs: Barbiturates
CNS Depressants: Barbiturates and Benzodiazepines
Phase I Reactions: Oxidation of Aliphatic and Aromatic Carbon-Containing Systems
Oxidation reactions are fundamental in aromatic carbon-containing systems. An example is the hydroxylation of phenobarbital, a process that transforms it into...
CNS Depressants: Alcohol and Nicotine
Antiepileptic Drugs: GABAergic Pathway Potentiators
The key GABA pathway potentiators used in epilepsy management are as follows.
Benzodiazepines are a well-known class of drugs used for...
Acidity and Basicity of Alcohols and Phenols