The effects of flumazenil in neuropsychiatric disorders

Flumazenil is a benzodiazepine receptor antagonist. It is currently used mainly in the anaesthetic and emergency rooms to reverse the effect of exogenous benzodiazepines. Its use in a variety of experimental animal models and in human neuropsychiatric disorders continues to generate a wealth of information on the possible role of the benzodiazepine-GABA(A) receptor complex in their pathogenesis. In addition, labelled with carbon-11, flumazenil has proved to be one of the most successful positron emission tomography ligands stimulating research on the role of the benzodiazepine receptor in these disorders. This review focuses on the current state of play of flumazenil as a therapeutic or investigative agent in neuropsychiatry, citing also the relevant animal models.