5-sec-Butyl-5-ethylbarbituric acid;a sedative and hypnotic with intermediate duration of action; available as butabarbital sodium, with same usages. ... (05 Mar 2000) ... 
(bu-tә-bahr´bĭ-tәl) a short- to intermediate-acting barbiturate, used preoperatively as the base or sodium salt as a sedative and hypnotic aid to anesthesia. Administered orally.