Vi-Jon, LLC sells Swan 3% hydrogen peroxide solution that is labeled as being “For Treatment of Minor Cuts & Abrasions.” But the complaint says that the idea that 3% hydrogen peroxide helps clean and heal wounds is largely a medical myth, and that using it may even slow healing.
Two classes have been defined for this action:
- The Illinois Class is all persons in Illinois who bought the product during the applicable statutes of limitations.
- The Consumer Fraud Multi-State Class is all persons in Alabama, South Carolina, Wyoming, Delaware, Alaska, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Oklahoma who bought the product during the applicable statute of limitations.
Hydrogen peroxide, or H2O2, is found in many homes for first aid purposes and has been used as an antiseptic in treating wounds for many years. In fact, the complaint alleges that this use of hydrogen peroxide has often been handed down from mothers or grandmothers. “However,” the complaint alleges, “Alexander Fleming discovered that wounds treated with antiseptics like hydrogen peroxide had higher death rates and slower healing than wounds not treated at all.”
In building its case, the complaint refers to the information in a number of articles with titles like, “Everyone puts hydrogen peroxide on their wounds. They really shouldn’t” and “Bad News, Everybody: Hydrogen Peroxide Is Useless.”
The complaint alleges, “When hydrogen peroxide is applied to a cut, the catalase instantly converts hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen.” This may create a fizzing, which can help remove debris from in or around the wound. “Though this fizzing may look like germ-killing,” the complaint claims, “the only thing dying is the body’s fibroblasts, the skin cells responsible for healing cuts.”
While the product is commonly believed to help prevent infection, the complaint alleges that this is “misleading because studies show that to the extend hydrogen peroxide destroys possible harmful bacteria, it destroys a greater amount of beneficial bacteria and the surrounding skin tissue, and the result is a slower healing process.” Hydrogen peroxide, it says, can therefore do more harm than good.
The complaint describes the body’s healing process in detail, which highlights where the product might interfere with healing.
The complaint claims, “Other studies confirm hydrogen peroxide causes increased risk of infection [and] corrosive tissue damage and irreversibly worsens scarring.”
Page 5 of the complaint shows the front of the product bottle, bearing the words, “First Aid Antiseptic/Oral Debriding Agent” and “For Treatment of Minor Cuts & Abrasions.” Page 6 shows the back of the bottle, recommending the product be used as “first aid to help prevent the risk of infection in minor cuts, scrapes and burns” and the recommendation to “apply a small amount of product on the affected area 1 to 3 times a day[.]”
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Vi-Jon Hydrogen Peroxide May Slow Healing Complaint
July 2, 2022
Vi-Jon, LLC sells Swan 3% hydrogen peroxide solution that is labeled as being “For Treatment of Minor Cuts & Abrasions.” But the complaint says that the idea that 3% hydrogen peroxide helps clean and heal wounds is largely a medical myth, and that using it may even slow healing.
Vi-Jon Hydrogen Peroxide May Slow Healing ComplaintCase Event History
Vi-Jon Hydrogen Peroxide May Slow Healing Complaint
July 2, 2022
Vi-Jon, LLC sells Swan 3% hydrogen peroxide solution that is labeled as being “For Treatment of Minor Cuts & Abrasions.” But the complaint says that the idea that 3% hydrogen peroxide helps clean and heal wounds is largely a medical myth, and that using it may even slow healing.
Vi-Jon Hydrogen Peroxide May Slow Healing Complaint