K-Y LUBRICATING JELLY

Report of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry

Because of inquiries received, the Council has authorized publication of the following report declaring K-Y Lubricating Jelly inadmissible to New and Non­official Remedies.

W. A. Puckner, Secretary.

K-Y Lubricating Jelly (Van Horn and Sawtell, New York), originally advertised as a lubricant for instruments and the hands, is now also recommended as a therapeutic agent. If the claims for “K-Y” were limited strictly to such effects as result from the purely mechanical properties of a lubricant, it might be held that it would not come under the purview of the Council. The preparation, however, while introduced as a lubricant, is now offered for a broader field of use, and the manufacturers make claims which are not supported by any evidence available to the Council. Evidence the following, taken from a circular that accompanies the package:

“K-Y allays smarting and burning at once through its pronounced soothing and cooling effects, and thus makes an admirable dressing for burns.”

“Many physicians make a practice of anointing the bodies of their measle and scarlet fever patients with ‘K-Y,’ in this way affording gratifying relief from itching and irritation, and effectively preventing dissemination of infectious material.”

And this from another circular:

“I had one of the most troublesome cases of pruritus vulvæ that I had ever seen. I guess I must have tried everything and the case had been referred to me by another man, who had previously tried everything, including cauterization. Well, one day I was examining her, and of course K-Y on the speculum—the irritation seemed to quiet down, and the following day she said she felt no effects from it at all. Then later on, it returned, and I couldn’t imagine what had done so much good, unless it could have been the lubricant, so I told her to buy a tube, which she did. Every once in a while she has a return of it slightly, but she just applies K-Y and clears it all up.”

The manufacturers state that they do not know why K-Y is so soothing, but suggest:

“Possibly the cooling action of the combination, and the effect of the 4% boric acid contained, are factors that enter. Be all that as it may, the fact certainly remains that oftentimes, after other local measures fail, ‘K-Y’ lubricating Jelly gives relief.”

Elsewhere it is claimed to be germicidal, and to give relief in other conditions, thus:

“Diabetic and uremic irritations, not only of the genitalia, but of other parts, have been found fully as amenable as pruritus vulvae to the soothing influence of ‘K-Y’ Lubricating Jelly, especially if the previous application is removed with water every time a new one is put on.”

The foregoing citations are obviously intended largely for the public, and make it plain that “K-Y” Jelly is not in the class of nonmedical and harmless external applications; on the contrary, these claims tend to create the impression that the spread of measles and scarlet fever can be prevented in the stage of desquamation. To place such statements in the hands of the patient supported by the tacit endorsement of a prescription is to create a false and dangerous sense of security and to lead to a failure to observe other and more important means of preventing dissemination of these diseases.

The Council held K-Y Lubricating Jelly in conflict with Rules 1, 4, 6 and 10, and authorized publication of this report.—(From The Journal A. M. A., Sept. 29, 1917.)