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.”