The Use of Labeled Drugs in Psychopharmacology Research

Abstract

A decade ago Gerard [¹] published an article entitled “Drugs for the Soul; The Rise of Psychopharmacology.” At that time, three out of ten prescriptions in the United States were being written for various tranquilizers, and the annual usage of a typical psychoactive drug, meprobamate, was in excess of 1 billion tablets. The use of such agents, not only in the treatment of severe mental illness, but also in ameliorating the mental stress of everyday life, has continued to mushroom. Along with the increased use of psychotherapeutic agents, there has been a concomitant growth of the research area known as “psychopharmacology.”