Merthiolate
Description
[Eli Lilly] Originally a trademark name for a solution of 0.1% thimersol (sodium ethylmercurithiosalicylate) in alcohol. Introduced in the 1930s, merthiolate was a widely used antiseptic and as a preservative. Its hot-pink color produced stains that were difficult to remove. Lily ceased manufacturing all thimersol products in 1991,but it is still made by other companies as a preservative sometimes used in vaccinations. Currently the product name is generically used for solutions of benzalkonium chloride in water. A red dye is used to simulate the thimersol color.
Synonyms and Related Terms
thimersol
Risks
Highly toxic by ingestion.
Humco: [http://archpdfs.lps.org/Chemicals/Merthiolate-Tincture.pdf SDS
Resources and Citations
- Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993
- Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
- The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998