ArticlePharmaceutics2014
Characterization of commercially available vaginal lubricants: a safety perspective.
Article in Pharmaceutics, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 64 citations in OpenAlex.
- Comparison of estradiol hemihydrate 10 µg vaginal tablets versus estradiol hemihydrate 10 µg vaginal gel in postmenopausal women with vaginal atrophy: a randomized crossover study.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2025Trial
- Nanomedicine in the Topical Management of Vulvovaginal Candidiasis: An Overview of In Vivo Data.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Treating Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause in Postmenopausal Women with a History of Breast Cancer.Drugs & aging · 2026Review
- Defining benchmarking in the context of safety assessment of personal care and cosmetic products using New Approach Methodologies.NAM journal · 2026Review
- Assessment of the vaginal microbiota before and after use of hyperosmolal lubricant during transvaginal ultrasound.American journal of obstetrics and gynecology · 2025Article
- Development and characterization of formulations based on combinatorial potential of antivirals against genital herpes.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2025Article
- Development and Characterization of Sodium Bicarbonate-Based Gel for Cytolytic Vaginosis.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Imiquimod-Loaded Nanosystem for Treatment Human Papillomavirus-Induced Lesions.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Intravaginal Gel for Sustained Delivery of Occidiofungin and Long-Lasting Antifungal Effects.Gels (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Vaginal Sheets withGels (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- In vitro and ex vivo models for evaluating vaginal drug delivery systems.Advanced drug delivery reviews · 2022Review
- Toxicity Assessment of Resveratrol Liposomes-in-Hydrogel Delivery System by EpiVaginalPharmaceutics · 2022Article
- Vaginal cytokine profile and microbiota before and after lubricant use compared with condomless vaginal sex: a preliminary observational study.BMC infectious diseases · 2021Observational
- Observational
- Use of Moisturizers and Lubricants for Vulvovaginal Atrophy.Frontiers in reproductive health · 2021Review
- Development of multipurpose technologies products for pregnancy and STI prevention: update on polyphenylene carboxymethylene MPT gel development†.Biology of reproduction · 2020Article
- Hyperosmolal vaginal lubricants markedly reduce epithelial barrier properties in a three-dimensional vaginal epithelium model.Toxicology reports · 2018Article
- Nanoparticle Encapsulation for Antiretroviral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis.Journal of nanotechnology and materials science · 2017Article
- Treating vulvovaginal atrophy/genitourinary syndrome of menopause: how important is vaginal lubricant and moisturizer composition?Climacteric : the journal of the International Menopause Society · 2016Review
- What do portuguese women prefer regarding vaginal products? Results from a cross-sectional web-based survey.Pharmaceutics · 2014Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Vaginal lubricants are widely used by women to help solve intercourse difficulties or as enhancers, but recent reports raise questions about their safety. Twelve commercially available gel products were tested for pH value, pH buffering capacity, osmolality and cytotoxicity relevant to vaginal delivery. Obtained data were analyzed in light of the recent Advisory Note by the World Health Organization (WHO) for personal lubricants to be concomitantly used with condoms. Results showed that most products do not comply with pH and osmolality recommended standards, thus posing a potential hazard. Four products presented values of osmolality around three-times higher than the maximum acceptable limit of 1200 mOsm/kg. In vitro cell testing further identified substantial cytotoxicity even at 1:100 dilutions for three products, contrasting with no significant effect of up to at least a 1:5 dilution of a Universal Placebo gel. However, no direct correlation between these last results and pH or osmolality was found, thus suggesting that the individual toxicity of specific formulation components plays an important role in the outcome of a particular product. Although further assessment is required, these results highlight potential safety issues related to the formulation of commercially available vaginal lubricants.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.