Lorazepam is recognized as a tranquillizer. It is presented for intramuscular and intravenous injection. In a study of this drug's possible effects in premedication, its action was studied systematically when it was used for preoperative premedication. The drug has no side-effects other than drowsiness, which occurs in almost all cases. It produces very good premedication, sometimes with anterograde amnesia in the doses used. This anterograde amnesia is dependent on the dosage used but it is always accompanied by profound drowsiness, from which the patient can be roused verbally. The dose will be selected in relation to whether amnesia is desired or not. However, whatever the dose administered (over 2.5 mg), the tranquillizing effect is always of high quality.