The scarce amounts of ephedrine in the Ephedra plant led to investigations of synthetic analogues of ephedrine.Amphetamine was first synthesized in 1887 in Germany by Romanian chemist Lazăr Edeleanu who named it phenylisopropylamine; its stimulant effects remained unknown until 1927, when it was independently resynthesized by Gordon Alles and reported to have sympathomimetic properties. Amphetamine had no medical use until late 1933, when Smith, Kline and French began selling it as an inhaler under the brand name Benzedrine as a decongestant. Benzedrine sulfate was introduced 3 years later and was used to treat a wide variety of medical conditions, including narcolepsy, obesity, low blood pressure, low libido, and chronic pain, among others. During World War II, amphetamine and methamphetamine were used extensively by both the Allied and Axis forces for their stimulant and performance-enhancing effects. As the addictive properties of the drug became known, governments began to place strict controls on the sale of amphetamine. For example, during the early 1970s in the United States, amphetamine became a schedule II controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act. In spite of strict government controls, amphetamine has been used legally or illicitly by people from a variety of backgrounds, including authors, musicians, mathematicians, and athletes.Amphetamine is still illegally synthesized today in clandestine labs and sold on the black market, primarily in European countries. Among European Union (EU) member states in 2018, 11.9 million adults of ages 15–64 have used amphetamine or methamphetamine at least once in their lives and 1.7 million have used either in the last year.
Childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD), also known as Hellers syndrome and disintegrative psychosis, is a rare condition characterized by late onset of developmental delays—or severe and sudden reversals—in language, social function, and motor skills. Researchers have not been successful in finding a cause for the disorder. CDD has some similarity to autism and is sometimes considered a low-functioning form of it. In May 2013, CDD, along with other sub-types of PDD (Aspergers syndrome, autism, and PDD-NOS), was fused into a single diagnostic term called "autism spectrum disorder" under the new DSM-5 manual.CDD was originally described by Austrian educator Theodor Heller (1869–1938) in 1908, 35 years before Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger described autism. Heller had previously used the name dementia infantilis for the syndrome.An apparent period of fairly normal development is often noted before a regression in skills or a series of regressions in skills. The age at which this regression can occur varies, after three years of normal development is typical. The regression, known as a ‘prodrome,’ can be so dramatic that the child may be aware of it, and may in its beginning even ask, vocally, what is happening to them. Some children describe or appear to be reacting to hallucinations, but the most obvious symptom is that skills apparently attained are lost.Many children are already somewhat delayed when the disorder becomes apparent, but these delays are not always obvious in young children. This has been described by many writers as a devastating condition, affecting both the family and the individuals future.