Piminodine is an analog of pethidine. It was used in medicine for obstetric analgesia and in dental procedures briefly during the 1960s and 1970s, but has largely fallen out of clinical use. Piminodine produces analgesia, sedation and euphoria and has typical side effects associated with opioids, including potentially serious respiratory depression, which can be life-threatening. Piminodine was more potent than desipramine and protriptyline under similar conditions. Compared to meperidine, piminodine is more potent and gives smoother duration. Piminodine can be addictive. Piminodine is currently a Schedule II controlled substance in the United States.