Section 1 - CHEMICAL PRODUCT AND COMPANY IDENTIFICATION

PRODUCT NAME

KMC OILTOOLS SODIUM BROMIDE - LIQUID

NFPA

PRODUCT USE

Used according to manufacturer' s directions.

Section 2 - HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION

CANADIAN WHMIS SYMBOLS

EMERGENCY OVERVIEW

RISK

Vapors may cause dizziness or suffocation.

POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS

ACUTE HEALTH EFFECTS

SWALLOWED

  Considered an unlikely route of entry in commercial/industrial environments.  Accidental ingestion of the material may be damaging to the health of the individual.  Bromide poisoning causes intense vomiting so the dose is often removed. Effects include drowsiness, irritability, inco-ordination, vertigo, confusion, mania, hallucinations and coma. Other effects include skin rash, nervous system symptoms, sensory disturbances and increased spinal fluid pressure. They have been used as sedatives and depress the central nervous system. Toxicity is increased if dietary chloride is reduced. Repeated ingestion can cause a syndrome with acne, confusion, irritability, tremor, memory loss, weight loss,  headache, slurred speech, delusions, stupor, psychosis and coma.  Central nervous system (CNS) depression may include general discomfort, symptoms of giddiness, headache, dizziness, nausea, anaesthetic effects, slowed reaction time, slurred speech and may progress to unconsciousness. Serious poisonings may result in respiratory depression and may be fatal.  Ingestion of propylene glycol produced reversible central nervous system depression in humans following ingestion of 60 ml. Symptoms included increased heart-rate (tachycardia),  excessive sweating (diaphoresis) and grand mal seizures in a 15 month child who ingested large doses (7.5 ml/day for 8 days) as an ingredient of vitamin preparation.  Excessive repeated ingestions may cause hypoglycaemia (low levels of glucose in the blood stream) among susceptible individuals; this may result in muscular weakness, incoordination and mental confusion.  Very high doses given during feeding studies to rats and dogs produce central nervous system depression (although one-third of that produced by ethanol), haemolysis and insignificant kidney changes.  In humans propylene glycol is partly excreted unchanged in the urine and partly metabolised as lactic and pyruvic acid. Lactic acidosis may result.  

EYE

  This material can cause eye irritation and damage in some persons.  

SKIN

  The material may cause skin irritation after prolonged or repeated exposure and may produce on contact skin redness, swelling, the production of vesicles, scaling and thickening of the skin.  Entry into the blood-stream, through, for example, cuts, abrasions or lesions, may produce systemic injury with harmful effects. Examine the skin prior to the use of the material and ensure that any external damage is suitably protected.  

INHALED

  The material is not thought to produce either adverse health effects or irritation of the respiratory tract following inhalation (as classified using animal models). Nevertheless, adverse effects have been produced following exposure of animals by at least one other route and good hygiene practice requires that exposure be kept to a minimum and that suitable control measures be used in an occupational setting.  Inhalation of vapours may cause drowsiness and dizziness. This may be accompanied by narcosis, reduced alertness, loss of reflexes, lack of coordination and vertigo.  

CHRONIC HEALTH EFFECTS

  Principal routes of exposure are by accidental skin and eye contact and by inhalation of vapors especially at higher temperatures.  Chronic intoxication with ionic bromides, historically, has resulted from medical use of bromides but not from environmental or occupational exposure; depression, hallucinosis, and schizophreniform psychosis can be seen in the absence of other signs of intoxication. Bromides may also induce sedation, irritability, agitation, delirium, memory loss, confusion, disorientation, forgetfulness (aphasias), dysarthria, weakness, fatigue, vertigo, stupor, coma, decreased appetite, nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea, hallucinations,  an acne like rash on the face, legs and trunk, known as bronchoderma (seen in 25-30% of case involving bromide ion), and a profuse discharge from the nostrils (coryza). Ataxia and generalised hyperreflexia have also been observed. Correlation of neurologic symptoms with blood levels of bromide is inexact. The use of substances such as brompheniramine, as antihistamines, largely reflect current day usage of bromides; ionic bromides have been largely withdrawn from therapeutic use due to their toxicity. Several cases of foetal abnormalities have been described in mothers who took large doses of bromides during pregnancy.  Limited evidence suggests that repeated or long-term occupational exposure may produce cumulative health effects involving organs or biochemical systems.  There is limited evidence that, skin contact with this product is more likely to cause a sensitization reaction in some persons compared to the general population.  There is some evidence that human exposure to the material may result in developmental toxicity. This evidence is based on animal studies where effects have been observed in the absence of marked maternal toxicity, or at around the same dose levels as other toxic effects but which are not secondary non-specific consequences of the other toxic effects.  Propylene glycol is though, by some, to be a sensitizing principal following the regular use of topical creams by eczema patients. A study of 866 persons using a formulation containing propylene glycol in a patch test indicated that propylene glycol caused primary irritation in 16% of exposed individuals probably caused by dehydration. Undiluted propylene glycol was tested on 1556 persons in a 24 hour patch test. 12.5% showed reactions which were largely toxic (70%) or allergic in nature (30%). Reaction responses reached their maximum on the second day or later. Reactions were seasonal in nature ranging from 17.8% in winter to 9.2% in other seasons. In a patch-test using 25 standard allergens conducted on 500 individuals, propylene glycol ranked fourth in sensitizing response. 84 subjects were patch tested using 100% propylene glycol. as well as 2% and 5% in water. With undiluted material, 15% demonstrated a reaction, with 40% of the reactions being allergic in nature and 60% being irritant. In dilute solutions 5 of 248 subjects exhibited a reaction.  Undiluted propylene glycol tested on the skin of man produced no irritation under open conditions but when applied under occlusive conditions, for 2 weeks, it produced severe erythema, edema and vesicles, probably due to sweat retention and weak primary irritation.  Predictive contact skin sensitization tests indicate that propylene glycol is an intermediate grade sensitizer with an index of 1% of tested subjects.  Groups of cats fed 5 gm/kg/day of propylene glycol for 14 weeks showed a significant dose-  related increase in red blood cell Heinz body formation without any marked signs of hemolytic anemia. The no-effect-level for cats without formation of Heinz bodies is 100-  500 ml/kg. There is no evidence of anemia or degenerative change. Groups of rats dosed orally with 0.5 or 10 mg/kg/day for 12 weeks had lowered food intake but no adverse effects on body weights. Erythrocytes were more fragile. Heinz bodies were not apparent.