Difemetorex

{{Short description|Piperidine class stimulant}}

{{Drugbox

| IUPAC_name = 2-[2-(diphenylmethyl)piperidin-1-yl]ethanol

| image = Difemetorex.svg

| tradename =

| pregnancy_category =

| legal_status = Withdrawn

| routes_of_administration = Oral

| bioavailability =

| metabolism =

| elimination_half-life =

| excretion =

| CAS_number = 13862-07-2

| ATC_prefix = none

| ATC_suffix =

| ChEMBL = 2104291

| PubChem = 65607

| ChemSpiderID = 59048

| UNII_Ref = {{fdacite|correct|FDA}}

| UNII = O0417MPF6W

| C=20 | H=25 | N=1 | O=1

| smiles = OCCN1C(CCCC1)C(c2ccccc2)c3ccccc3

}}

Difemetorex (INN) or diphemethoxidine (USAN) is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant drug introduced in France in 1966 by the pharmaceutical company, Ciba-Geigy; it was briefly used as an appetite suppressant and weight loss aid into the early 1970s, sold under the brand name Cleofil. A member of the piperidine chemical class, difemetorex was described as having such a disruptive and intolerable side effect of insomnia that patient drug compliance suffered and frequency of clinical use decreased, resulting in withdrawal from the market and cessation of production, availability, accessibility, and overall recognition among related substances. It is only known to have been marketed in France, and has remained virtually non-existent in the current era.{{cite book | vauthors = Brudon P | title = Médicaments pour tous en l'an 2000?: les multinationales pharmaceutiques suisses face au tiers monde : l'exemple du Mexique | publisher = Editions d'En bas | location = France | year = 1983 | pages = 207 | isbn = 2-8290-0039-0 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ZgLwphUSEN0C&pg=PA92}}{{cite journal | vauthors = Isbell H, Chrusciel TL | title = Dependence liability of "non-narcotic" drugs | journal = Bulletin of the World Health Organization | volume = 43 Suppl | issue = Suppl | pages = 1–111 | date = 1970 | pmid = 4949109 | pmc = 2427633 | doi = | url = }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Stepanek J, Zolliker VR | title = [Circulatory effects of the anorectic Diphemethoxidine compared with the effects of Amphetamine and Aminorex] | journal = Archives Internationales de Pharmacodynamie et de Therapie | volume = 191 | issue = 2 | pages = 376–99 | date = June 1971 | pmid = 5089225 }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Stepanek J | title = [Alteration of the acid-base equilibrium by the anorectic diphemethoxidine in comparison with the effect of amphetamine and aminorex] | journal = Archives Internationales de Pharmacodynamie et de Therapie | volume = 199 | issue = 1 | pages = 122–38 | date = September 1972 | pmid = 5072180 }}{{cite book | vauthors = Hall JA, Morton I | title = Concise dictionary of pharmacological agents: properties and synonyms | publisher = Kluwer Academic | year = 1999 | isbn = 0-7514-0499-3 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=mqaOMOtk61IC&pg=PA98}}{{cite web | url =https://www.who.int/medicinedocs/collect/edmweb/pdf/s4895e/s4895e.pdf | title = The use of common stems in the selection of International Nonproprietary Names (INN) for pharmaceutical substances | access-date = 2010-03-23 }}{{dead link|date=December 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

File:Difemetorex synthesis.svg