From 1954 to 1977, the Australian biochemist Shirley Andrews was researching safe ways to use lithium for the treatment of manic depressive illnesses while working at the Royal Park Psychiatric Hospital in Victoria. Lithium bromide was used as a sedative beginning in the early 1900s. Many metal bromides are produced commercially, including LiBr, NaBr, NH4Br, CuBr, ZnBr2 and bromide detox AlBr3.
Bromide Toxicity and the Best Supplements to Combat It
Bromide compounds, especially potassium bromide, were frequently used as sedatives in the 19th and early 20th centuries. While conducting this research she discovered that bromide caused symptoms of mental illness, leading to a major reduction in its usage. Like lithium carbonate and lithium chloride, it was used as a treatment for bipolar disorder. Hydrogen bromide, which is a diatomic molecule, takes on salt-like properties upon contact with water to give an ionic solution called hydrobromic acid. Bromide salts of alkali metal, alkaline earth metals, and many other metals dissolve in water (and even some alcohols and a few ethers) to give bromide ions.
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Despite this, in the studies by Kantrowitz et al. (37) and Paull et al. (38) bromide revealed no influence in canine thyroid function or morphology. Megaoesophagus has been anecdotally reported (68), although whether there is a causal relation with bromide treatment remains unclear. In these patients it was not possible to conclude if polyphagia was due to bromide or the combination of the two medications (23). Non-neurological adverse effects include mainly polyuria, polydipsia and polyphagia, all frequently seen in patients receiving phenobarbital (14, 23).
7. Non-canine patients
- Reductions in phenobarbital dosage were possible in 35% (23) and 70% (58) of dogs, after the addition of bromide.
- The current recommended therapeutic bromide serum concentrations are based in only a few previous studies on the use of this medication (23, 26, 27).
- Only 5% of the patients in this study vomited during the loading period, without this being impeditive to finish the loading protocol (14).
- The value of monitoring the patient’s triglyceridemia in preventing or anticipating signs of pancreatitis is also unknown and could reveal an interesting field for future studies.
- Inspired by these results, Rossmeisl et al. (77) studied the existence of a possible similar relationship between the magnitude of pseudohyperchloremia and bromide serum concentration in bromide treated epileptic dogs.
Clinical symptoms are generally not observed at plasma concentrations below 50 milligrams per deciliter but become common at levels between 50 and 100 milligrams per deciliter. Symptoms often include neurological effects such as fatigue, confusion, memory impairment, irritability, ataxia, and in severe cases, psychosis or seizures. High levels can interfere with chloride metabolism, as bromide can replace chloride ions in physiological processes, particularly affecting nerve transmission. Unlike highly reactive elemental bromine, bromide is a stable ion formed when a bromine atom gains an electron, achieving a full outer electron shell. In any case, it seems wise to monitor for signs of pancreatitis in canine patients treated with bromide.
Therapeutic bromide levels are measured in European countries like Germany, where bromide is still used therapeutically in human epilepsy. However, this is not a conventional test in human medicine in the US since there are no FDA-approved uses for the bromide. The bromide ion is antiepileptic and as bromide salt, is used in veterinary medicine in the US. Bromide toxicity can also cause a type of skin eruption, see potassium bromide. A bromide ion is the negatively charged form (Br−) of the element bromine, a member of the halogens group on the periodic table. Adding selenium to your health regimen can potentially mitigate the harmful oxidative effects prompted by bromide exposure.
Bromides: History, sources, types, applications and hazards
Hundreds of organobromine compounds are generated by this process. Bromoperoxidase enzymes use bromide (typically in seawater) to generate electrophilic brominating agents. Their use in over-the-counter sedatives and headache remedies (such as Bromo-Seltzer) in the United States extended to 1975 when bromides were withdrawn as ingredients due to chronic toxicity.
After the initial use of potassium bromide, other different formulations were also tried, including its association to sodium or ammonium. Bromide has now been successfully used as an ASM in the treatment of canine epilepsy for more than three decades (14, 16). It is well tolerated, has a widespread availability and low cost, making it the primary treatment choice in canine epilepsy (10, 11). Adequate seizure control can improve the quality of life for both canine patients and their owners (8). Treatment of patients suffering from epilepsy is recommended according to the patient’s seizure frequency, severity of ictal or post ictal phase, owner’s beliefs, and lifestyle (7).
Medicinal and veterinary uses
Air vapor concentrations must not exceed 0.1 parts per million. According to medical records examinations, many mid-century mental inpatients were found to have bromide poisoning. At high doses, potassium bromide is highly irritant to the gastrointestinal mucosa, causing nausea and sometimes vomiting (a typical effect of all soluble potassium salts)
Potassium Bromide
Incorporating certain supplements into your routine can strengthen your body’s defenses by reducing oxidative stress and aiding in the elimination of harmful compounds like bromide. Silver bromide (AgBr) is a light-sensitive compound used in traditional photography. In contemporary applications, bromide remains important in several industries. Potassium bromide, for instance, served as a sedative and anticonvulsant in the 19th and early 20th centuries to treat epilepsy, insomnia, and anxiety. This solubility allows bromide to be widely distributed in natural water sources and to be utilized in various dissolved applications. These salts are generally highly soluble in water, readily dissolving to release bromide ions into the solution.
Bromide serum concentration can drop in a matter of hours possibly leading to breakthrough seizures (68). Future prospective studies assessing bromide efficacy as monotherapy in epileptic dogs receiving a stable and uniform diet could help to better clarify its possible role as a possible first-line ASM and deepen our understanding of recommended serum therapeutic ranges. Diets were also not uniform throughout the patients of these studies, possibly impacting bromide half-life and consequently the level of maintenance dose required. Bromide follows phenobarbital and imepitoin (for idiopathic epilepsy) as the ASM with “moderate recommendation and most likely to be effective treatment” when used in monotherapy (11). Additionally, a 20–30% of epileptic dogs are refractory to treatment (23, 27, 93, 94), a phenomenon also observed in human medicine (95).
O’Neil et al. (5) reported epilepsy with a one-year period prevalence of 0.04% for patients presenting to primary veterinary care practices in the United Kingdom. It’s also our endeavor to discuss the current use as an alternative or add-on with other known antiseizure medications and potential future studies that might enhance our understanding and use of this medication. Bromide is the first effective antiseizure medication used in human medicine since the XIX century.
Final Thoughts on Bromide Detoxification
Alternatively, in an emergency (e.g., patients in status epilepticus) the loading dose of 600 mg/kg can be administered quicker, over a 24-h period, in multiple 100 mg/kg dosages given 4 h apart (55). A loading dose of 125 mg/kg, divided into two daily administrations over 5 days, has been previously suggested. A dosage of 30 mg/kg/day was suggested for use in cats (41), but currently there is a weak level of evidence regarding the efficacy and safety of this medication in feline patients (53).
Bromide: the good, the bad, and the ugly of the oldest antiseizure medication
See Definitions and Examples » A bromide is a statement so worn and trite as to be ineffective when it’s offered to make someone feel better. Eosinophils need bromide for fighting multicellular parasites. In one specialized report, bromide is an essential cofactor in the peroxidising catalysis of sulfonimine crosslinks in collagen IV. The historical dye Tyrian purple is produced by similar enzymatic reactions.
- It is thought that dogs living close to the sea can be exposed to air with higher concentrations of salt in the form of aerosols (91, 92).
- At high doses, potassium bromide is highly irritant to the gastrointestinal mucosa, causing nausea and sometimes vomiting (a typical effect of all soluble potassium salts)
- Most analytical methods that are currently used to assess chloride concentrations measure the total halide ion concentration, what includes chloride and bromide.
- Sedation, ataxia and/or paresis can occur in patients treated with bromide, particularly with increased serum concentrations (14, 23).
- Agricultural practices, food contamination, and environmental pollutants can expose individuals to elevated bromide levels, which have been linked to adverse health effects.
Polyphagia was also reported by about 20% of the owners of dogs treated with bromide, with this number increasing to around 80% if this medication was combined with phenobarbital (64). Sedation, ataxia and/or paresis can occur in patients treated with bromide, particularly with increased serum concentrations (14, 23). If the patients continued to experience seizures, these were more likely to decrease in duration for dogs treated with phenobarbital compared to those treated with bromide. First line treatment with potassium bromide was considered to be an acceptable choice, leading to the eradication of seizures in 52% of the dogs (16). A response rate (decrease of at least 50% in monthly seizure frequency) of 69% (9/13) was reported with the addition of bromide to the treatment of imepitoin-refractory epileptic dogs (61).
Acne-like red papules (Bromine rash) that can progress to a pustular lesion/uncerate over the face, neck, and upper chest. LiBr can be used as a desiccant in some forms of air conditioning due to its extremely hygroscopic nature. Lithium Bromide (LiBr) is a chemical compound composed of lithium and bromine. Ethylation of carboxylate salts yields ethyl esters, carbanion derivatives yield ethylated compounds, thiourea salts yield ethylisothiouronium salts, and amines yield ethylamines. In organic synthesis, EtBr serves as a stand-in for the ethyl carbocation (Et+) synthon.