Charles Frederic Gerhardt (1816–1856), Harmon Northrop Morse (1848–1920)
Called acetaminophen in the United States, Canada, and much of Latin America, and paracetamol almost everywhere else, acetaminophen/paracetamol is among the world’s most widely used drugs, contained in more than one hundred products. The drug’s unceremonious discovery in 1852 by the French chemist Charles Frederic Gerhardt, its fade into oblivion, its rediscovery by the American chemist Harmon Northrop Morse in 1873, and its eventual marketing and blockbuster success in the 1950s are worthy of note.
The story begins in 1886, when acetanilide was mistakenly given to a patient, whose fever unexpectedly dissipated. Physicians viewed an effective antipyretic (fever-reducing) drug such as acetanilide to be a significant medical advance. Its pain-relieving (analgesic) effects were an additional benefit. Acetanilide was used for decades despite causing methemoglobinemia, an impairment of the oxygen-carrying hemoglobin in the blood. Seeking an antipyretic that did not cause this problem, acetaminophen was tested in humans in 1893. It was effective but reported to have a modest tendency to cause methemoglobinemia, so it was shelved for six decades.
After its association with methemoglobinemia was disproved, acetaminophen was marketed by Sterling-Winthrop in 1953 as safer for children and adults with stomach ulcers than aspirin. In 1955, McNeil Laboratories sold acetaminophen as Tylenol; the following year, paracetamol was marketed by Frederick Stearns & Co. as Panadol. Apart from causing severe liver toxicity or failure when taken in overdose, it is a relatively safe aspirin substitute, especially for children.
To date, Tylenol contamination has resulted in two noteworthy drug recalls. In 1982, seven individuals in Greater Chicago died after ingesting Tylenol to which cyanide had been added intentionally. McNeil assumed responsibility and recalled 31 million bottles within a week. Fresh supplies were issued in tamper-proof containers. It was a public relations victory for McNeil, and virtually all lost sales were regained. By contrast, on multiple separate occasions in 2010, McNeil’s parent company Johnson & Johnson was obliged to recall Tylenol and forty other nonprescription medicines because of chemical and bacterial contamination resulting from grossly substandard manufacturing procedures.
SEE ALSO Hydrogen Cyanide (1704), Aspirin (1899).
The Sick Girl is an 1882 oil painting by Danish painter Michael Ancher, a leading member of the Skagen artists. This nineteenth-century girl might have taken antipyrine (phenazone) to relieve pain and reduce fever, but this was a far more toxic drug than acetaminophen.