9. Development of Dilantin

Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
In 1936, Dr. H. Houston, former dean of Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, developed a drug called Dilantin with Dr. Tracy J. Putnam that worked as a treatment for epilepsy. Dilantin is an anti-epileptic drug that slows down impulses in the brain that cause seizures and remains one of the most widely used anti-seizure drugs in the world.
Also known as diphenyihydantoin, Dilantin lacked the sedative effects of phenobarbital, the only other available anti-epileptic drug as the time. The drug has also been used to treat abnormal heart beats.