Tranquillisers

A tranquilizer refers to a drug which is designed for the treatment of anxiety, fear, tension, agitation, and disturbances of the mind, specifically to reduce states of anxiety and tension.

Tranquilizer, as a term, was brought into existence by F.F. Yonkman (1953), from the conclusions of investigative studies using the drug Reserpine, showed the drug had a calming effect on all animals it was administered to. Reserpine, is a Centrally Acting Rauwolfia Alkaloid. The word directly refers to the state of tranquility in a person and other animals.

The term is thought to belong to a lexicon of words thought popular or so-called common, and so is therefore accordingly thought as not generally in use within the field of medicine, specifically in reference to the group of medications known as anti-psychotic or neuroleptics.

The term is generally used as a synonym for sedative. When used by health care professionals, it is usually qualified or replaced with more precise terms:

Mood stabilizers might also be considered to belong to the classification of tranquilizing agents.

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