Review on the toxicity of ethylmercury, including its presence as a preservative in biological and pharmaceutical products

• Published in: Journal of applied toxicology Vol. 21; no. 1; pp. 1 - 5
• Main Author: Magos, L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.01.2001; Wiley
• Subjects: Animals; Biological and medical sciences; biological preparations; Biological Products; Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases; clinical studies; dietary exposure; Drug intoxications. Doping; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; ethylmercury; Ethylmercury Compounds - adverse effects; Ethylmercury Compounds - pharmacokinetics; Food Additives - adverse effects; Food Contamination; Humans; kinetics; Medical sciences; Mercury Poisoning; Metals and various inorganic compounds; methylmercury; Nervous System Diseases - chemically induced; Nervous System Diseases - pathology; occupational exposure; Occupational Exposure - adverse effects; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Preservatives, Pharmaceutical - adverse effects; thimerosal; Thimerosal - adverse effects; Toxicology; Human; Toxicity; Drug intoxication; Thiolate; Patient; Drug adjuvant; Review; Occupational exposure; Blood; Heavy metal; Sodium Compounds; Preservative; Food poisoning; Content; Carboxylate; Mercury Organic compounds; Occupational medicine
• ISSN: 0260-437X; 1099-1263
• DOI: 10.1002/jat.721

The interest in ethylmercury has been raised lately by a letter sent to The Lancet suggesting that ethylmercurythiosalicylate preservative (product names: Thimerosal, Thiomersal, Merthiolate) in hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) caused severe ethylmercury intoxication. Most likely as a reverberation of this letter, the Public Health Service, US Department of Health and Human Services and the American Academy of Pediatrics published a joint statement on Thimerosal in vaccines. As the nature of this statement has not required documentation on the toxicity of ethylmercury and the authors of the letter sent to The Lancet made the diagnosis without the prudent evaluation of published data, this survey attempts to fill the gap. It is not concerned with contact allergy or with acrodynia (Pink disease). The only reported case of acrodynia was the result of regular injection of gamma-globulin with ethylmercury preservative to a 20-year-old man who had a history of chronic skin rash and sensitivity to sulfonamide drugs.