Liniments Or Rubbing Compounds
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Transportation & Substances · CPSC Code 1915
Stable over 5 years
The verdict
Liniments Or Rubbing Compounds carry a danger score of 33/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 1,611 ER-treated injuries a year that are roughly flat over the last five years.
- 33/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 1,611
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 3.3%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1915 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 33/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for liniments or rubbing compounds - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume1,611 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)3.3%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend-7%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Liniments Or Rubbing Compounds (CPSC product code 1915, in the Transportation & Substances category) generate an estimated 1,611 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 32,215 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 33/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are roughly flat over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2006 (2,356 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2016 (1,108 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for liniments or rubbing compounds is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 30,901 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by burn, chemical to the eyeball (982 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 32,216 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 3.3% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 3 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how liniments or rubbing compounds fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 16,511 | 15,634 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Eyeball | Burn, Chemical | |
| Face | Burn, Chemical | |
| Internal | Ingestion | |
| Eyeball | Foreign Body | |
| Eyeball | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Mouth | Burn, Chemical | |
| Ear | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Lower Trunk | Burn, Chemical |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
15MOM POSSIBLE INGESTION OF *** ***. PER FATHER, PT HAD IT 'ALL OVER HANDS AND KNOWS HOW CHILDREN PUT HANDS IN THEIR MOUTH PC CONTACTED BY FAMILY PRIOR TO ED VISITDX ACCIDENTAL INGESTION
3YOM C/O INGESTION. PATIENT LICKED ROLLER OF CAMPHOR GEL. POISON CONTROL CONTACTED. NO TREATMENT RECOMMENDED. DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION
14MOM P/W INGESTION, AS PER MOM PT SWOLLED ONE TEASPOON OF *** GEL AT HOME, C/O NONE, DX:DRUG INGESTION
15 MOM PRESENTS WITH POSSIBLE INGESTION OF *** GEL THAT GRANDMOTHER FOUND PATIENT HAD PUT IN HIS HAIR AND WAS WORRIED THAT HE MIGHT HAVE INGESTED SOME OF IT. HE IS ASYMPTOMATIC. DX: ENCOUNTER FOR OBSERVATION OF SUSPECTED TOXIC EFFECT FROM INGESTED SUBSTANCE
2YOM PRESENTS TO THE ED BROUGHT IN BY MOTHER AFTER SUSPECTED ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL INGESTION. PATIENT WAS FOUND WITH AN EMPTY BOTTLE OF RUBBING ALCOHOL WITH HIS CLOTHES DRENCHED WITH ALCOHOL BAL UNKNOWN DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF ISOPROPANOL
18MOF PRESENTS TO THE ED AFTER THE PATIENT INGESTED 4.5G OF BENZOCAINE OINTMENT. PER PATIENT'S MOTHER IT WAS A NEW TUBE AND THAT WAS MISSING AMOUNT. DX: BENZOCAINE POISONING, ACCIDENTAL DRUG INGESTION
19MOM MOM CAUGHT HIM DRINKING FROM A BOTTLE OF RUBBING ALCOHOL, SHE GRABBED IT FROM HIM AND HE STARTED VOMITING DX: INGESTION OF A SUBSTANCE
2YOF BIB MOM AFTER INGESTION OF *** DX: TOXIC EFFECT OF PETROLEUM PRODUCT, UNINTENTIONAL
2YOM MOM FOUND HIM WITH AN OPEN BOTTLE OF *** HAD THE OINTMENTS SPREAD ALL OVER HIS BODY AND IN HIS MOUTH DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF SALICYLATES
19 MOM TOOK A SMALL SIP OF RUBBING ALCOHOL FROM A CLEAR BOTTLE, COUGHED, VOMITED AND SPIT IT OUT IMMEDIATELY. DX: INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE ACCIDENTAL
23MOF WITH EATING *** DX: WELLNESS EXAM
1YOM PRESENTS WITH INGESTION AT FOREIGN SUBSTANCE, PATIENT WAS FOUND WITH A 1/2 FULL TUBE OF *** IN HIS HAND AND SAMLL AMOUNT ON HIS FACE AND IN HIS MOUTH. PATIENTS PARENTS WIPED HIS FACE IMMEDIATLEY. PATIENT DID HAVE 1 SMALL EPISODE OF EMESIS RIGHT AFTER THE INCIDENT. SYMPTOMS HAVE RESOLVED. DX: INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
An 18 mo girl bit into a camphor bar ( Deer Brand 96% camphor) that had been placed under her pillow by parents to relieve chest "congestion". She rapidly suffered 3 convulsions , requiring ED visit, seizure treatment, and hospitalization.
CHRISTIAN DAY'S PURE MAGIC PURE WINTERGREEN OIL (AKA METHYL SALICYLATE) DOES NOT HAVE A CHILD SAFETY CAP AS REQUIRED BY THE POISON PACKAGING PREVENTION ACT. I am concerned because even a small amount of methyl salicylate can be deadly if ingested. It is sold on the following websites: [redacted]
I put a little bit of the Roundfire premium flammable liquid on a warm pan & the flame shot out and burned my face and ignited my hair. I had to walk to the kitchen sink to put out the flame. Second degree burns on my face & hair loss due to fire. Ignition happened and the pan surface was just warm. Liquid was not added to a flame.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to liniments or rubbing compounds on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are liniments or rubbing compounds?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, liniments or rubbing compounds have a danger score of 33/100 (low risk). An estimated 1,611 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from liniments or rubbing compounds?
The most common injury is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 30,901 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from liniments or rubbing compounds increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for liniments or rubbing compounds injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 32,216 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by liniments or rubbing compounds?
Of all ER visits involving liniments or rubbing compounds, approximately 3.3% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (96.7%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with liniments or rubbing compounds?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Transportation & Substances
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 33/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 0-4 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
