Haldol

n. The brand name for haloperidol, a high-potency, relatively long-lasting antipsychotic drug in the butyrophenone family of drugs developed in the late 1950s. It frequently causes pronounced side effects including tardive dyskinesia and extrapyramidal effects which sometimes become endogenous if the drug is used for long periods. It does not have the anticholinergic effects and negative cardiovascular effects of phenothiozines. Its use has been sharply curtailed since the development of atypical antipsychotic drugs, which have fewer side effects.