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Article: The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of thiopental as used in lethal injection.(The Lethal Injection Debate: Law and Science)
- Article from:
- Fordham Urban Law Journal
- Article date:
- June 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Fordham Urban Law Journal. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Thiopental (sometimes called, although inaccurately, Sodium Pentothal) was the most commonly used intravenous anesthetic agent for about fifty years, beginning in the mid-1940s. (1) As states began to discuss and develop protocols for lethal injection in the 1970s, thiopental was the logical choice as the medication to render the inmate unconscious prior to the administration of subsequent medications, most commonly pancuronium (a medication that paralyzes skeletal muscle and results in cessation of breathing) followed by potassium chloride (a salt that is a necessary component of the diet but when given intravenously in large doses results in the cessation of electrical ...