Sodium Fluoride

Sodium fluoride is an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inorganic_compound" title="Inorganic compound" >inorganic chemical compound</a> with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_formula" title="Chemical formula" >formula</a> NaF. A colorless solid, it is a source of the fluoride ion in diverse applications. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium" title="Sodium" >Sodium</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoride" title="Fluoride" >fluoride</a> is less expensive and less <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hygroscopy" title="Hygroscopy" >hygroscopic</a> than the related salt <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potassium_fluoride" title="Potassium fluoride" >potassium fluoride</a>.

Fluoride salts are used to enhance the strength of teeth by the formation of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorapatite" title="Fluorapatite" >fluorapatite</a>, a naturally occurring component of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooth_enamel" title="Tooth enamel" >tooth enamel</a>.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-7" >[8]</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-8" >[9]</a>Although sodium fluoride is also used to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation" title="Water fluoridation" >fluoridate water</a> and, indeed, is the standard by which other water-fluoridation compounds are gauged,<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hexafluorosilicic_acid" title="Hexafluorosilicic acid" >hexafluorosilicic acid</a> (H2SiF6) and its salt sodium hexafluorosilicate (Na2SiF6) are more commonly used additives in the U.S.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-9" >[10]</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toothpaste" title="Toothpaste" >Toothpaste</a> often contains sodium fluoride to prevent <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_caries" title="Dental caries" >cavities</a>.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-motw-10" >[11]</a> Alternatively, sodium fluoride is used as a cleaning agent, e.g. as a "laundry sour".<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-Aigueperse-6" >[7]</a>A variety of specialty chemical applications exist in synthesis and extractive <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallurgy" title="Metallurgy" >metallurgy</a>. It reacts with electrophilic chlorides including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acyl_chloride" title="Acyl chloride" >acyl chlorides</a>, sulfur chlorides, and phosphorus chloride.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-halpern-11" >[12]</a> Like other fluorides, sodium fluoride finds use in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desilylation" title="Desilylation" class="mw-redirect" >desilylation</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_synthesis" title="Organic synthesis" >organic synthesis</a>. The fluoride is the reagent for the synthesis of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorocarbon" title="Fluorocarbon" >fluorocarbons</a>.

In medical imaging, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorine-18" title="Fluorine-18" >fluorine-18</a>-labelled sodium fluoride is used in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron_emission_tomography" title="Positron emission tomography" >positron emission tomography</a> (PET). Relative to conventional bone <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scintigraphy" title="Scintigraphy" >scintigraphy</a> carried out with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_camera" title="Gamma camera" >gamma cameras</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SPECT" title="SPECT" class="mw-redirect" >SPECT</a> systems, PET offers more sensitivity and spatial resolution. A disadvantage of PET is that fluorine-18 labelled sodium fluoride is less widely available than conventional <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technetium-99m" title="Technetium-99m" >technetium-99m</a>-labelled <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiopharmaceutical" title="Radiopharmaceutical" class="mw-redirect" >radiopharmaceuticals</a>.

<h2 >Safety</h2>

<div class="rellink boilerplate seealso" >See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluoride_poisoning" title="Fluoride poisoning" class="mw-redirect" >Fluoride poisoning</a></div>

The lethal dose for a 70 kg (154 lb) human is estimated at 5–10 g.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-Aigueperse-6" >[7]</a> Sodium fluoride is classed as toxic by both<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inhalation" title="Inhalation" >inhalation</a> (of dusts or aerosols) and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingestion" title="Ingestion" >ingestion</a>.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-12" >[13]</a> In high enough doses, it has been shown to affect the heart and circulatory system.

In the higher doses used to treat <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osteoporosis" title="Osteoporosis" >osteoporosis</a>, plain sodium fluoride can cause pain in the legs and incomplete stress fractures when the doses are too high; it also irritates the stomach, sometimes so severely as to cause ulcers. Slow-release and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enteric_coating" title="Enteric coating" >enteric-coated</a> versions of sodium fluoride do not have gastric side effects in any significant way, and have milder and less frequent complications in the bones.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-13" >[14]</a> In the lower doses used for water fluoridation, the only clear adverse effect is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dental_fluorosis" title="Dental fluorosis" >dental fluorosis</a>, which can alter the appearance of children's teeth during <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooth_development" title="Tooth development" >tooth development</a>; this is mostly mild and is unlikely to represent any real effect on aesthetic appearance or on public health.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_fluoride#cite_note-14" >[15]</a>

Sodium Fluoride

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