OFFICIAL NAMES: Amyl nitrate, amyl nitrite

STREET NAMES: Amy, high-tech, kix, liquid gold, locker room, poppers, ram, rave, rush, snappers, thrust, TNT

DRUG CLASSIFICATIONS: Not scheduled, inhalant

Overview

Amyl nitrite was discovered in England in the 1840s and used to treat angina pectoris, a heart condition marked by severe chest pains and shortness of breath. Until then, physicians had treated the condition by using leeches to "bleed" the body of impurities. Amyl nitrite was used to treat angina pectoris because it dilated blood vessels, causing the heart to get more oxygen and thereby relieving the pain. However, one of the side effects was that it caused the patient to experience a short but dizzying burst of euphoria.

The drug was packaged in small, mesh-covered glass vials, which could be crushed with the thumb and fingers and the vapors inhaled. (The vials of amyl nitrite...