Allergenic characterization of best-selling personal lubricants.

Abstract

Personal lubricants vary appreciably in ingredient composition. Although some products are labeled hypoallergenic, these claims are seldom evidence-based. The objective was to determine the potential allergenicity of popular lubricants and elucidate the validity of hypoallergenic product claims. This cross-sectional study involved publicly available data on Amazon's 50 best-selling lubricants as of July 2023. Product ingredient lists were cross-referenced with the North American Contact Dermatitis Group and American Contact Dermatitis Society allergen series. Associations were explored between lubricant price per ounce, average customer rating, number of customer reviews, hypoallergenic claim, lubricant base, and allergen quantity using descriptive statistics, Kruskal-Wallis tests, Wilcoxon tests, ?2 tests, and Spearman correlation analyses. Of all studied, 30% (n=15) of products were allergen-free. Nine personal lubricants (18%) were advertised as hypoallergenic, 5 of which were among the 15 products without allergens. Hypoallergenic products were less likely to contain allergens than lubricants without this claim (P=0.03). Silicone-based lubricants contained fewer allergens than water-based lubricants (P<0.01) but were more expensive (P=0.01). Understanding potential allergenicity of personal lubricants should inform clinicians' product recommendations and differential diagnosis of anogenital contact dermatitis. Silicone-based lubricants labeled as hypoallergenic may be the safest option for sensitive skin but are not guaranteed to be allergen-free.