Possible Interaction: Ethanol and Calcium Carbimide

“The most commonly prescribed agents are the aversive drugs (e.g., disulfiram, calcium carbimide ), which when ingested prior to alcohol produce an unpleasant physiologic reaction, which is supposed to deter further drinking.”

“In a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study involving five … alcoholic volunteers, oral administration of 0.7 mglkg of calcium carbimide (CC) 12 hr … ingestion of ethanol (0.125, 0.25, and 0.5 gm/kg) produced an interaction … of increased blood acetaldehyde level, tachycardia, and decreased diastolic blood pressure.”

“Pretreatment with CC reduced the rate of ethanol metabolism at the 0.5 gm/kg ethanol dose.”

“ Calcium carbimide pretreatment at the 4-h interval produced increased blood ethanol level for the last hour of the interaction and reduced the rate of ethanol metabolism.”

“For these experimental conditions, calcium carbimide had a duration of action of at least 24 h to produce an interaction with ethanol.”

“SummaryIn six male alcoholic volunteers, oral administration of calcium carbimide (0.7 mg/kg) before ingestion of ethanol (0.5 g/kg) produced an interaction consisting of increased blood acetaldehyde level, tachycardia and increased pulse pressure, which was due mainly to decreased diastolic blood pressure.”

“In the second part of this study seven subjects received 50 mg of calcium cyanamide 4 hr prior to an intravenous ethanol dose of 0.2 g/kg.”

“Ingestion of calcium carbimide caused significant elevations in blood acetaldehyde (p less than 0.001) and ethanol (p less than 0.05) levels, but acetaldehyde did not influence platelet aggregability or the aggregation-associated TXB2 formation.”

“Ingestion of calcium carbimide caused a significant elevation in blood acetaldehyde (p less than 0.001) and ethanol (p less than 0.05) levels, but acetaldehyde did not influence platelet aggregation or TXB2 formation.”

“When ingested with alcohol , certain drugs (e.g. cephalosporins, sulfonylurea, metronidazole, griseofulvin, chloramphenicol), calcium cyanamide , dimethyl formamide and certain mushrooms cause a disulfiram-alcohol type reaction.”

“In 1953, Fergusen 4 reported that citrated calcium carbimide (Temposil) in the presence of ingested alcohol produced an acetaldehyde reaction similar to that of disulfiram and alcohol.”

“Combined ethanol and calcium carbimide treatment for 2, 5 or 8 days (E + CC) markedly increased blood acetaldehyde levels.”

“Combined ethanol and calcium carbimide treatment increased blood-acetaldehyde levels and ANP mRNA levels by 40-60% in 2-8 day experiments, compared to the controls.”