fentanyl
/ˈfɛntənʌɪl
/ /ˈfɛntənɪl/noun [mass noun] Medicine
A synthetic opiate drug which is a powerful painkiller and tranquillizer.Opiates, including morphine and fentanyl, are powerful painkillers and anesthetics, but they also can slow a person's breathing to a dangerous rate....
- Described as being 30 to 100 times more powerful than morphine, fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is also used to provide relief to persons suffering with chronic pain.
- As a result, pharmaceutical companies have produced alternative opioids such as oxycodone, hydromorphone, fentanyl, methadone, and tramadol.
Origin
1960s: apparently from fen- (representing phen-) + -t- + an- + -yl.