Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 Sep 6;16(9):e68775.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.68775. eCollection 2024 Sep.

A Systematic Review of Phenibut Withdrawals

Christopher Stewart  1 , Hunter Simonsen  1 , Savitha K Satyasi  2 , Nauman Ashraf  2 , Suporn Sukpraprut-Braaten  1
Affiliations
Review

A Systematic Review of Phenibut Withdrawals

Christopher Stewart et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Phenibut is an anxiolytic agent that was originally used as a treatment for anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and insomnia. It is a gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) mimetic, which stimulates GABA receptors in the brain. This increases the inhibitory effects of GABA leading to a greater chance of a sedative response and risk for abuse. It is not currently registered in Western countries but is easily accessible online as a supplement. This is a systematic review of case reports of phenibut patients with withdrawal symptoms published in the PubMed database between January 2010 and October 2023. Following the inclusion criteria application, 15 articles were included. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the results. The average age of patients with phenibut withdrawals was 31.8 years (SD=12.66 years), and 13 cases (87%) were males. The average dosage was 13.6 g/day (SD=8 g), ranging from 1.5 to 28.5 g/day. Nine cases (60%) presented at an emergency department, and three cases (17%) were presented at a clinic setting facility. The most common history of patients who took phenibut was alcohol or drug abuse (73%). A history of anxiety and depression (60%) was also seen in the majority of patient presentations. Phenibut is never prescribed in the United States, and there are no official guidelines for phenibut use. Educating all physicians about the potentially harmful supplements available to patients and their biological mechanisms is essential. This review highlights the importance of collecting a thorough patient history, including supplements, to help prevent phenibut misuse and subsequent withdrawals.

Keywords: addiction; online supplement; phenibut; supplement abuse; withdrawal symptoms.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Diagram
Figure 2
Figure 2. Comparison of Withdrawal and Presenting Symptoms
A. Withdrawal Symptoms. B. Presenting Symptoms.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Comparison of Symptoms by Dose
A. Presenting Symptoms by Dose. B. Withdrawal Symptoms by Dose.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Detoxification of a patient with comorbid dependence on phenibut and benzodiazepines by tapering with baclofen: Case report. Coenen NC, Dijkstra BA, Batalla A, Schellekens AF. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 2019;39:511–514. - PubMed
    1. Phenibut (beta-phenyl-GABA): A tranquilizer and nootropic drug. Lapin I. CNS Drug Rev. 2001;7:471–481. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Acute behavioural disturbance associated with phenibut purchased via an internet supplier. Downes MA, Berling IL, Mostafa A, Grice J, Roberts MS, Isbister GK. Clin Toxicol (Phila) 2015;53:636–638. - PubMed
    1. An unusual presentation of an uncommon drug: A case report on phenibut overdose. Nedzlek CD, Michaelis A. Cureus. 2022;14:0. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Withdrawal symptoms after Internet purchase of phenibut (β-phenyl-γ-aminobutyric acid HCl) Magsalin RM, Khan AY. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 2010;30:648–649. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources