Cetrimide, or alkyltrimethylammonium bromide, is an

antiseptic An antiseptic ( and ) is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue to reduce the possibility of sepsis, infection, or putrefaction. Antiseptics are generally distinguished from ''antibiotics'' by the latter's abil ...

which is a

mixture In chemistry, a mixture is a material made up of two or more different chemical substances which can be separated by physical method. It is an impure substance made up of 2 or more elements or compounds mechanically mixed together in any proporti ...

of three

quaternary ammonium compound In organic chemistry, quaternary ammonium cations, also known as quats, are positively-charged polyatomic ions of the structure , where R is an alkyl group, an aryl group or organyl group. Unlike the ammonium, ammonium ion () and the primary, sec ...

s: tetradonium bromide (TTAB or MITMAB),

cetrimonium bromide Cetrimonium bromide, also known with the abbreviation CTAB, is a quaternary ammonium surfactant with a condensed structural formula C16H33)N(CH3)3r. It is one of the components of the topical antiseptic cetrimide. The cetrimonium (hexadecyltr ...

(CTAB), and laurtrimonium bromide (DTAB or LTAB). It was first discovered and developed by

ICI #REDIRECT ICI {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...

and introduced under the brand name ''Cetavlon''. It is used as a 1-3 % solution for cleaning roadside accident wounds. ICI also introduced

Savlon Savlon is a brand of antibacterial personal care products with the active ingredients of cetrimide and chlorhexidine gluconate. Commonly sold as a cream, the product range also includes antiseptic sprays, sticking plasters and other antiseptic ...

, which was a combination of cetrimide and

chlorhexidine Chlorhexidine is a disinfectant and antiseptic which is used for skin disinfection before surgery and to disinfect surgical instruments. It is also used for cleaning wounds, preventing dental plaque, treating yeast infections of the mouth, and ...

. ICI sold the Savlon brand OTC to

Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical technologies corporation headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Its common stock is a c ...

in May 1992. Cetrimide is used in various applications such as antiseptic agents, diagnostic test and analysis, topical formulations, and dental treatment.

References

Antiseptics Cationic surfactants {{Pharma-stub