Oven-cleaner pads: new risk for corrosive injury

Toxicity resulting from exposure to oven cleaners as reported to the UK National Poisons Information Service (NPIS) from 2009 to 2015

INTRODUCTION

Oven cleaning products contain corrosive substances, typically sodium or potassium hydroxide.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the reported toxicity from exposure to oven cleaning products.

METHODS

Telephone enquiries to the UK National Poisons Information Service regarding oven cleaning products were analysed retrospectively for the period January 2009 to December 2015.

RESULTS

There were 796 enquiries relating to 780 patients. Ninety-six percent of the products involved in the reported exposures contained sodium hydroxide and/or potassium hydroxide. Ingestion alone (n = 285) or skin contact alone (n = 208) accounted for the majority of cases; inhalation alone (n = 101), eye contact alone (n = 97), and multiple routes of exposure (n = 89) accounted for the remainder. Ninety-five percent of patients exposed by inhalation, 94% exposed dermally and 85% reporting eye exposure, developed features of toxicity. Patients exposed by multiple routes developed symptoms in 70% of cases. Only 103 of the 285 patients ingested oven cleaner directly, whereas 182 patients ingested food they considered to have been contaminated with oven cleaner. In 100 of the 103 direct ingestions where the features and World Health Organisation/International Programme on Chemical Safety/European Commission/European Association of Poison Centres and Clinical Toxicologists Poisoning Severity Score were known, 56 reported symptoms which were minor in 51 cases. The most common features following ingestion were vomiting (n = 26), abdominal pain (n = 22) or pharyngitis (n = 15). Skin burns (n = 91) predominantly involving the hands or arms, occurred in 44% of dermal exposures. Following inhalation, patients frequently developed respiratory features (n = 52) including coughing and chest pain/tightness. Eye pain (n = 43) and conjunctivitis (n = 33) commonly occurred following ocular exposure.

CONCLUSIONS

Most (71%) patients exposed to an oven cleaner irrespective of the route of exposure developed features of toxicity, though in most cases only minor features developed; moderate or severe features ensued in ∼4%. Those patients exposed dermally, ophthalmically or by inhalation developed features more frequently (≥85%) than those who ingested a product directly (56%).

Mr Muscle oven cleaner--is he too strong for us?

Mr Muscle is the proprietary name for a brand of household cleaning preparations produced by Bristol-Myers Co. Ltd of Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK. Recently manufacturing and marketing rights were purchased by Johnson Wax Ltd of Camberley, Surrey, part of S.C. Johnson and Son Inc. of Racine, Wisconsin, USA. The spray-on oven cleaner has been the causal link in a series of six deep dermal and full thickness skin burns admitted to the Welsh Regional Burns and Plastic Unit during the period January 1990 to July 1992. These patients will be discussed as a series of case reports. The constituents of the cleaner, its mode of action, packaging and presentation, together with regulations controlling its use will be discussed. Also a treatment regimen, with a plan of prevention for future burns, will be proposed. Information from the Johnson Wax group regarding recent revisions in the marketing of the product will also be presented.