Iodide doses and skin diseases

Found this link in the ulcerative colitis forum.

When my mom went c/t from lorazepam, she got this vasculitic rash on her lower legs.

I gave her 300mg sski 2x for one day and it took 12 days to go away.

I wanted to do 3x every day, but I didn't know if it was causing her breathing problems.

Potassium iodide

Potassium iodide (KI) is prepared by reacting iodine with a hot solution of potassium hydroxide. It is mainly used in the form of a saturated solution, 100gm of potassium iodide to 100ml of water. This equates to approximately 50mg/drop. The solution is usually added to water, fruit juice or milk before drinking.

Potassium iodide has been primarily used in the treatment and prevention of simple goitre, which is endemic in areas where the diet is deficient in iodides. Goitre results from low levels of thyroid hormone. Potassium iodide is usually given for this purpose as iodised salt. Other indications include treatment of hyperthyroidism, radiation protectant of the thyroid gland, pre-operative preparation of patients with Graves disease and the treatment of some dermatological conditions such as cutaneous lymphatic sporotrichosis and inflammatory dermatoses.

Potassium iodide for dermatological diseases

It is not clear how potassium idodide works in the treatment of dermatological conditions but it may be because of its effect on neutrophils. Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell, important in the immune system's fight against bacteria.

Potassium iodide appears to be particularly effective in conditions where neutrophils predominate in the early stages of the disease. Its activity against fungi is possibly because it kills the fungi directly or by enhancement of the body's immunologic and non-immunologic defence mechanisms.

The effectiveness of potassium iodide in the treatment of dermatological diseases has been shown in a number of studies.

For many diseases, newer more modern treatments are now available. However, because of its effectiveness and low cost, potassium iodide is still sometimes the drug of choice. If not, it is often used as a second line drug when other treatments are found to be ineffective.

http://dermnetnz.org/treatments/potassium-iodide.html