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| Clinical data | |
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| Trade names | Coramine |
| Other names | Nicotinic acid diethylamide |
| AHFS/Drugs.com | International Drug Names |
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| Pharmacokinetic data | |
| Eliminationhalf-life | 0.5 h |
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| ECHA InfoCard | 100.000.380 |
| Chemical and physical data | |
| Formula | C10H14N2O |
| Molar mass | 178.235 g·mol−1 |
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Nikethamide is astimulant which mainly affects the respiratory cycle. Widely known by its former trade name ofCoramine, it was used in the mid-twentieth century as a medical countermeasure againsttranquilizeroverdoses, before the advent of endotrachealintubation and positive-pressure lung expansion. It is no longer commonly considered to be of value for such purposes.[citation needed]
In alternate terminology, it is known asnicotinic acid diethylamide, which meaningfully emphasizes its laboratory origins, and of which its common name is derived as ablend.[citation needed]
It is useful for mountain climbers to increase endurance at high altitudes.[1]
It is available as a short-actingover-the-counter drug in several South American and European countries, combined with glucose in form of lozenges.[citation needed]
Contraindications includehypertension,cardiovascular disease, andepilepsy.[1]
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Coramine was used by suspectedserial killerJohn Bodkin Adams when treating patientGertrude Hullett, whom he was suspected ofmurdering.[2] However, the toxicity of nikethamide is quite low (LD50 rabbits 650 mg/kg oral, LD50 rats 240 mg/kg subcutaneous).[citation needed]
Theodor Morell,Adolf Hitler's personal physician, would inject the German ruler with Coramine when Hitler was unduly sedated with barbiturates. In addition, Morell would use Coramine as part of an all-purpose "tonic" for Hitler.[3]
In some sports, nikethamide is listed by theWorld Anti-Doping Agency as a banned substance.Jaime Huélamo was stripped of his bronze medal at the1972 Olympic individual cycling road race after testing positive for Coramine.[4] Croatian tennis playerMarin Čilić was suspended from competition for nine months after he tested positive for nikethamide in April 2013.[5] This ban was later reduced to four months after Cilic appealed and claimed he had unintentionally ingested it in a glucose tablet bought at a pharmacy.[6] Polishkart driver Igor Walilko was given a two-year ban, later reduced to eighteen months, from competition in 2010 due to testing positive for nikethamide after a win inGermany in July, 2010.[7]
In July 2021, Swiss athlete and doctorKariem Hussein was positively tested for nikethamide, which he regularly uses during training. He missed the2020 Summer Olympics inTokyo, and was banned from competitions for nine months.[8]
