Diphoterine is a decontamination solution used in

first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with a medical emergency, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery until medical services arrive. First aid is gener ...

for the emergency treatment of

chemical spills A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combine ...

to the eyes and body.

Mechanism of action

Diphoterine solution contains an

amphoteric In chemistry, an amphoteric compound () is a molecule or ion that can react both as an acid and as a base. What exactly this can mean depends on which definitions of acids and bases are being used. Etymology and terminology Amphoteric is d ...

chelating 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 ...

molecule: a substance which is capable of reacting with both

acids An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis acid. The first category of acids are the ...

and

alkalis In chemistry, an alkali (; from the Arabic word , ) is a basic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a soluble base has a pH greater than 7.0. The a ...

when applied to either type of chemical spill, stopping the aggressive action of a corrosive or irritant chemical, halting the reaction with the body. However, it is not fully effective at halting the body's reaction with

hydrofluoric acid Hydrofluoric acid is a solution of hydrogen fluoride (HF) in water. Solutions of HF are colorless, acidic and highly corrosive. A common concentration is 49% (48–52%) but there are also stronger solutions (e.g. 70%) and pure HF has a boiling p ...

. This is because hydrofluoric acid is poisonous as well as corrosive. Treatment with either Hexafluorine or calcium gluconate is required to deal with hydrofluoric acid contamination. Like all of the emergency treatments, Diphoterine solution is not a substitute for professional medical attention, so immediate attention from emergency medical personnel should always be sought, especially if the chemical spill was to the eye.

Effectiveness

The efficacy of the Diphoterine solution has been shown to be effective in a two-year study on humans and also in a study on animals. Its effectiveness as compared to use of water alone, and therefore its necessity, has been questioned by some medical experts. On the other hand these statements do not provide any studies that compare the effectiveness of the Diphoterine solution compare to water. The largest case series reported to date does compare the effectiveness of water and the Diphoterine solution. "One hundred eighty cases of alkali splashes to the skin were evaluated clinically. Two groups were compared; those who had applied Diphoterine first and those who had applied water first." Here are the results of this independent study: "There were no signs of chemical burn in 52.9% of the group who applied Diphoterine first compared with 21.4% of the group who applied water first. Only 7.9% of the group who applied Diphoterine first had blisters or more severe signs compared with 23.8% of the group who applied water first. The differences were statistically significant (P < 0.001). After implementation of Diphoterine the "first aid" injury rate for chemical burns fell 24.7% (95% CI 0.5–43.0%)."

References

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Mechanism of action

Effectiveness

See also

References