Deodorant Chemical Burn on the Armpit: First Steps, Evidence and California Law

If deodorant burned your armpit: the short answer

If you think a deodorant or antiperspirant burned the skin under your arm, you likely have two questions: what to do right now, and whether anyone is responsible. This guide answers both, starting with your health. If the area is burning or blistering now, follow the chemical burn first aid steps in the next section and get medical help.

This guide covers first aid, what a chemical burn can look like, what antiperspirant labels must say, what to keep, how to report a reaction, how California law treats these claims, and who may be responsible.

First steps for a chemical burn under the arm

Your health comes first. This section summarizes public first-aid guidance from MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. It is general information, not medical advice, and it does not replace a doctor.

Stop using the product

Stop applying the product to the area. Federal rules require antiperspirant labels to tell users to "Stop use if rash or irritation occurs".

First aid for a chemical burn on the skin

MedlinePlus lists these steps for a chemical burn or reaction:

1. Brush off any of the chemical that is dry.
2. Remove clothing and jewelry that touched the chemical.
3. Flush the skin with cool running water for at least 15 minutes.

The MedlinePlus guide to burns also says to avoid breaking burn blisters, and not to apply ice, butter, oil or household remedies to a severe burn.

When to call 911 or get emergency care

The MedlinePlus burns page lists situations that call for 911 or your local emergency number. They include:

• The burn is very large, about the size of your palm or larger.
• The burn is severe (full-thickness, also called third degree).
• You are not sure how serious it is.
• The burn is caused by chemicals or electricity.
• The person shows signs of shock.

The MedlinePlus chemical burn page separately says to call for medical help right away if the person has difficulty breathing, has a seizure or is unconscious, or if the burn is second or third degree. Read both pages in full.

See a doctor in every case

MedlinePlus treats a burn caused by chemicals as a reason to call 911, so do not assume the injury is minor. Whatever care you receive first, follow up with a doctor. A doctor can confirm what the injury is and how it should be treated. This guide does not suggest creams, ointments or home remedies; those are questions for your doctor.

What a chemical burn on the skin can look like

Doctors often group burns by how deep they go into the skin. MedlinePlus describes three levels on its burns page. In plain terms:

• First degree (superficial): affects only the outer layer of skin and causes pain, redness and swelling.
• Second degree (partial-thickness): affects the outer and underlying layer of skin and causes pain, redness, swelling and blistering.
• Third degree (full-thickness): affects the deep layers of skin and causes white or blackened skin, which may be numb.

This is a general summary. It is not a way to judge your own injury. A doctor can confirm how deep a burn is.

Skin reactions to personal-care products are not all the same. Whether a reaction is irritation, a rash or a burn is a medical question, and a doctor can confirm which it is.

This also matters on the legal side. A doctor's notes describing what the skin looked like, when symptoms started and what treatment was given can become important records. The section below on what to keep explains how to hold on to them.

What antiperspirant labels are required to say

Antiperspirants are regulated as over-the-counter drugs, the kind you can buy without a prescription. The federal labeling rule for antiperspirants, 21 C.F.R. § 350.50, sets out warnings their labels must carry. They include:

• "Do not use on broken skin"
• "Stop use if rash or irritation occurs"
• "Ask a doctor before use if you have kidney disease"

Aerosol sprays must also warn users to keep the spray away from the face and mouth, and must carry a warning about the pressurized container. The rule's required direction for use is "apply to underarms only."

What to check on your product

Look at whether your product's label says it is an antiperspirant. This section describes only the federal rule for antiperspirants. Whatever the label says, keep the container so its exact wording is preserved.

Why the label matters

In a product case, one common question is whether the warnings covered the risks that were known or knowable at the time. The California Supreme Court set that standard in Anderson v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., and the defects section below states it in full. Keeping the label preserves exactly what the warnings said.

How a product was used is also part of any claim, because California law looks at whether the product was used as intended or in a reasonably foreseeable way. It helps to write down how often you applied it, where, and for how long.

What to keep: the product, the packaging and your records

If a product may have hurt you, the things you keep now can matter later. Start with the product itself.

The product

Keep the product, including whatever is left in the container. Do not throw it away, return it to the store or send it to the company. Put it somewhere no one else will use it.

The packaging

Keep the can, stick or bottle and any box or outer packaging. The printed codes on your package can help show exactly which product you used.

Proof of purchase

Keep a receipt, an order confirmation, or the line on a bank or card statement that shows the purchase.

Medical records

Keep visit summaries, prescriptions and bills. Ask for copies after each visit.

Photos of the affected area over time

Take photos of the affected skin in good light at regular points, so changes are recorded as the skin heals or worsens.

Your own notes

Write simple notes while your memory is fresh: when you started using the product, how and how often you applied it, when symptoms began, and when you stopped. Keep these notes private.

Checklist

• The product and whatever is left in it
• The container and outer packaging, with codes visible
• A receipt, order confirmation or statement line
• Medical records, prescriptions and bills
• Dated photos of the affected area over time
• Your private notes

For more detail, read H Law Group's guide on how to preserve evidence after a product injury.

Reporting a reaction to the FDA

If the product is a cosmetic, you can report the reaction to the FDA. The FDA accepts reports of bad reactions to cosmetic products through its MedWatch program, either online or on Form FDA 3500B. The FDA page explains how to file. Antiperspirants are regulated as over-the-counter drugs, as the label section above explains; ask your doctor or pharmacist about the right reporting route for a drug product.

If you file a report, keep a copy or screenshot of what you submitted and note the date.

An FDA report is a safety report. It is separate from any legal claim and does not take the place of one.

If a product caused this, how California law works

If a product caused your injury, California law gives injured people a way to hold companies responsible. That does not mean every skin reaction is a legal case. It does mean the law does not require you to prove that a company was careless.

The rule comes from Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc. (1963) 59 Cal.2d 57. The California Supreme Court held that a manufacturer is strictly liable when it places a product on the market knowing the product will be used without being inspected for defects, and the product has a defect that injures someone.

The court explained why. The costs of injuries from defective products should fall on the manufacturers that put those products on the market, rather than on injured people "who are powerless to protect themselves."

What this means in plain words

Two terms come up often. The plaintiff is the person who brings the claim. The defendant is the company the claim is brought against.

Under strict liability, a plaintiff does not have to prove that the defendant was careless. The plaintiff does still have to show two things:

1. The product had a defect.
2. The defect caused the injury.

How the defect is shown depends on its type. In one kind of design-defect case, described in the next section, part of the burden shifts to the company once the injured person shows the design caused the injury.

Negligence is the legal word for carelessness. H Law Group explains more about why negligence is not required in a separate article.

Three ways a deodorant or antiperspirant can be legally defective

California recognizes three kinds of product defect. Each is a different way of showing that a product was not as safe as the law requires. H Law Group's article on what makes a product legally defective in California covers them in more detail. The examples below are hypothetical and do not describe any real product.

Manufacturing defect

In Barker v. Lull Engineering Co. (1978) 20 Cal.3d 413, the California Supreme Court described a manufacturing defect as a product that differs from what the manufacturer intended, or from other units in the same product line that are supposed to be identical. A hypothetical example would be a batch made differently from the rest. This is one reason the codes on the package matter: they can help identify the exact product you used.

Design defect

Barker set out two ways to show that a design is defective:

• Consumer expectations: the product did not perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used as intended or in a reasonably foreseeable way.
• Risks and benefits: once the injured person shows that the design caused the injury, the burden shifts to the company. The company must then show that the benefits of the design outweigh the risk of danger built into it.

Later, in Soule v. General Motors Corp. (1994) 8 Cal.4th 548, the court explained that the consumer expectations test is reserved for cases where the everyday experience of the product's users lets them judge how safely it should perform. Where that is not so, the jury is instructed only on the risks and benefits test.

Warnings and instructions

Barker also recognized that a product can be dangerous because it lacks adequate warnings or instructions. In Anderson v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp. (1991) 53 Cal.3d 987, the court held that a manufacturer must warn of risks that were known or knowable in light of the generally recognized and prevailing best scientific and medical knowledge available when the product was made and distributed.

For an antiperspirant, the label section above is the starting point. A label that tells users to stop if rash or irritation occurs is part of the picture. The question in a warnings claim is whether the label told users about the risks that were known or knowable, in that sense, at the time.

Causation

Causation means the link between the defect and the injury, and it has to be shown with evidence. Every claim turns on its own facts: which product was used, how it was used, and what the medical records show. That is why the steps in the section on what to keep matter.

Who may be responsible for a defective product

More than one company may share responsibility for a defective product.

The manufacturer

Under Greenman, the company that made the product can be held strictly liable for a defect that injures someone.

Sellers

In Vandermark v. Ford Motor Co. (1964) 61 Cal.2d 256, the California Supreme Court extended strict liability beyond manufacturers to retailers. In plain words, if you bought a product at a store, the business that sold it to you may also be part of a claim, not only the company that made it.

Finding everyone in the chain

Figuring out who made, distributed and sold a particular product depends on the product itself, its packaging and the proof of purchase. That is another reason the checklist above matters.

What a claim can include and what to do next

California law allows an injured person to seek recovery for the losses an injury caused (Civil Code section 3333), such as medical care and lost earnings. H Law Group explains what California law allows an injured person to recover in a separate guide.

Filing deadlines are strict. They are explained in the section below this article.

If you believe a deodorant or antiperspirant burned your skin, H Law Group's California attorneys can review the product, the packaging, your medical records and the timeline with you.

Common causes

Brands appear here only where a filed public court record connects them to allegations of this kind of injury. A listing does not mean a product caused anyone's injury.

• Old Spice deodorant, allegations only. In Colley v. Procter & Gamble Co., No. 1:16-cv-918 (S.D. Ohio), a 2016 federal lawsuit filed in Ohio, plaintiffs alleged that Old Spice deodorant caused burning, rashes, irritation, scarring, discoloration, scabbing and peeling skin. According to the court's order, they also alleged that the label warned only of rash or irritation and did not warn that use could result in chemical burns, skin peeling, open scabbing wounds and permanent scarring. The company said publicly that the reactions were skin reactions and not chemical burns, and advised anyone who had a reaction to stop using the product. On October 4, 2016, the court granted the manufacturer's motions to strike the class allegations and to dismiss, with leave for the plaintiffs to file an amended complaint within 21 days. These are allegations, not findings; that order made no finding that any product caused an injury. This was a ruling by one federal court in Ohio, not a statement of California law. This guide does not report the case's later history or final outcome.

The takeaway: the specific product, the symptoms and the medical records matter in any claim. That is why keeping the product, its packaging and your records is so important.