PENTAL

PENTAL, trimethylethylene, (CH₃)₂C:CHCH₃, an unsaturated hydrocarbon of the ethylene series, obtained from amylene hydrate, tertiary isoamyl alcohol, by the removal of water. Pental is a colorless, mobile liquid, very volatile and flammable, with a sharp, gasoline-like odor. Pental was used for inhalation anesthesia in doses of 15-20 cm³. Anesthesia occurs when using Pental within 1-1^1/2 minutes, but is accompanied by a number of dangerous side effects (convulsions, jaw clenching). The sharp drop in blood pressure is caused by paralysis of the vasomotor center. The unconscious state during pental anesthesia occurs much earlier than muscle relaxation and the disappearance of reflexes, and it is almost impossible to achieve the loss of reflexes without paralysis of the respiratory center, which is why the use of Pental for general anesthesia has now been abandoned.