Aminopyrine

/əˌmiːnoʊˈpaɪriːn/ noun

Definition

A fever-reducing medicine that was commonly used in the early 1900s to treat pain and fever, though it's now banned in many countries due to safety concerns.

Etymology

From amino- (from ammonia-derived chemical compounds) + pyrine (from Greek pyr meaning fire). The drug was synthesized in Germany in 1907 and named for its chemical structure containing an amino group attached to a pyrine ring.

Kelly Says

Aminopyrine was once as common in medicine cabinets as aspirin is today, but it was pulled from shelves worldwide because it could cause a dangerous blood disorder—one of the first major examples of a popular drug being removed for safety reasons.

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