COMPARISONS OF ANTIDOTAL EFFICACY OF SODIUM DIETHYLDITHIOCARBAMATE, D-PENICILLAMINE AND TRIETHYLENETETRAMINE UPON ACUTE TOXICITY OF NICKEL CARBONYL IN RATS
Sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, D-penicillamine and triethylenetetramine were administered to rats by i.m. injection in dosages equivalent to 0.6 times their respective LD50 values to compare their relative effectiveness in prevention of death caused by exposure for 15 min to inhalation of nickel carbonyl (1.4 or 4.2 mg Ni(CO)4/l of air). When the 3 drugs were administered to groups of rats at 10 min before or after the exposure to nickel carbonyl, sodium diethyldithiocarbamate was the most effective antidote. In contrast, when the drugs were administered at 6 h after exposure to nickel carbonyl, D-penicillamine was the most effective antidote. Based on the combined results of 4 sets of experiments, sodium diethyldithiocarbamate and D-penicillamine were significantly more effective than triethylenetetramine. Sodium diethyldithiocarbamate should remain the chelating agent of choice for therapy of nickel carbonyl poisoning. If sodium diethyldithiocarbamate is not available or if its use is contraindicated, D-penicillamine might be considered as an alternative chelating agent.