- merbromin
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/meuhr broh"min/, n. Pharm.an iridescent green, water-soluble powder, C20H8Br2HgNa2O6, that forms a red solution when dissolved in water: used as an antiseptic and as a germicide.[1940-45; MER(CURIC) + BROM(O)- + -IN2]
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antiseptic used to prevent infection in small cuts and abrasions. Commonly marketed as Mercurochrome, merbromin was the first of a series of antiseptics that contained mercury, a chemical element that disinfects by disrupting the metabolism of a microorganism. Merbromin stains surrounding tissue a brilliant red tinged with a yellow-green fluorescence. It is only a weak antiseptic and has been displaced in medicine by the more effective agents of the series, including nitromersol (Metaphen) and thimerosal (Merthiolate), and by antibiotics (antibiotic).* * *
Universalium. 2010.