[Thalidomide and its legacy, the rational inside the irrational].

Thalidomide was synthesized by Chemie Grünenthal from Germany and launched at October 1957, as a sedative and antiemetic drug. In only four years after being widely and freely prescribed to pregnant women, unleashed an epidemic of teratogenicity that revolutionized health and public opinion. From that moment, world regulation on drugs and its development was radically changed, the clinical trial as a tool was completely revised, while pharmacovigilance as a discipline was established. In a second chance, its irrational use as psychotropic drug was changed to use as immunomodulator, context in which it is prescribed today. This paper aims to highlight some historical aspects of thalidomide to draw conclusions for rational use of psychotropic drugs.