Is there a difference between sedatives, hypnotics, and tranquilizers?
Technically, a sedative is an agent that calms a person, and it may or may not cause drowsiness. An hypnotic is a drug that increases the probability of sleep. A tranquilizer (often thought to be the same as a sedative) is a drug that specifically reduces anxiety, or (formerly) overcomes schizophrenic symptoms. Today, the terms “anxiolytics”, “sedative-hypnotics”, and “antipsychotics” are more descriptive of the use of these drugs. All of these drugs can be abused, but only anxiolytics and sedative-hypnotics are capable of producing dependence.
