Sodium calcium edetate (sodium calcium EDTA), also known as edetate calcium disodium among other names, is a medication primarily used to treat

lead poisoning Lead poisoning, also known as plumbism and saturnism, is a type of metal poisoning caused by lead in the body. Symptoms may include abdominal pain, constipation, headaches, irritability, memory problems, infertility, numbness and paresthesia, t ...

, including both short-term and long-term lead poisoning. Sodium calcium edetate came into medical use in the United States in 1953.

Chelation agent

Sodium calcium edetate is in the

chelating agent Chelation () is a type of bonding of ions and their molecules to metal ions. It involves the formation or presence of two or more separate coordinate bonds between a polydentate (multiple bonded) ligand and a single central metal atom. These l ...

family of medication. It is a salt of edetate with two

sodium Sodium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Na (from Neo-Latin ) and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 element, group 1 of the peri ...

atoms and one

calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

atom. It works by binding to a number of heavy metals, which renders them almost inert and allows them to leave the body in the urine. Edetate disodium (Endrate) is a different formulation which does not have the same effects.

Medical use

Sodium calcium edetate's primary use is to treat

, for which it is an alternative to

succimer Succimer, sold under the brand name Chemet among others, is a medication tool used to treat lead, mercury, and arsenic poisoning. When it's radiolabeled with technetium-99m, it's used in many types of diagnostic testing. Common side effe ...

. It is given by slow injection into a vein or into a muscle. For

lead encephalopathy Toxic encephalopathy is a neurologic disorder caused by exposure to neurotoxic organic solvents such as toluene, following exposure to heavy metals such as manganese, as a side effect of melarsoprol treatment for African trypanosomiasis, adverse ef ...

sodium calcium edetate is typically used together with

dimercaprol Dimercaprol, also called British anti-Lewisite (BAL), is a medication used to treat acute poisoning by arsenic, mercury, gold, and lead. It may also be used for antimony, thallium, or bismuth poisoning, although the evidence for those uses is n ...

. It may also be used to treat

plutonium Plutonium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is a silvery-gray actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four ...

poisoning. It does not appear to be useful for poisoning by tetra-ethyl lead.

Side effects

Common side effects include pain at the site of injection. Other side effects may include

kidney problems Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

, diarrhea, fever, muscle pains, and

low blood pressure Hypotension, also known as low blood pressure, is a cardiovascular condition characterized by abnormally reduced blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps out blood and is ...

. Benefits when needed in

pregnancy Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring gestation, gestates inside a woman's uterus. A multiple birth, multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Conception (biology), Conception usually occurs ...

are likely greater than the risks.

History

Sodium calcium edetate came into medical use in the United States in 1953. It is on the

World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines The WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (aka Essential Medicines List or EML), published by the World Health Organization (WHO), contains the medications considered to be most effective and safe to meet the most important needs in a health s ...

References

{{Portal bar, Medicine Calcium compounds Chelating agents used as drugs Organic sodium salts World Health Organization essential medicines