June 3, 2019, Stuff.co.nz: Self-harm using deodorant cans becoming 'increasingly common' among teen girls https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/113200243/selfharm-using-deodorant-cans-becoming-increasingly-common-among-teen-girls There is growing concern for teen girls who hurt themselves by using deodorant cans. Two confirmed cases of bullous dermatitis artefacta - a rare skin disease induced by chemicals, heat or electrical current - have been identified in the UK with female patients aged 11 and 16. "I speculate that the patient sprays the deodorant with the can held very closely onto the skin for a prolonged period in a series of places, inducing a large welt which over hours progresses to form a blister," Dr Caroline Mahon, lead author of a letter discussing the cases, told Stuff. … Injuries on an 11-year-old girl, who used a deodorant aerosol to self-harm. The picture on the left is at presentation, with the one on the right 2-3 weeks later. The 16-year-old patient had blistering skin on her left foot, which affected her ability to walk, and the 11-year-old had a two-month history of lesions appearing on her left hand. Dr Mahon explained one of the patient's parents found a deodorant can "under the sheets at the bottom of her child's bed... some months after the skin lesions started appearing," which corroborated their hypothesis. Researchers from the University of Auckland explained this method was becoming "increasingly common" among school-aged children, but the condition itself is quite rare and "uncommon". "Bullae are an uncommon manifestation of dermatitis artefacta reported to be induced by pinching, thermal injury using a heated spoon and aerosolised products." They noted, at the time the study was published, there had been seven documented cases. An Auckland boy suffered this wound after completing the frosty challenge in 2016. Using aerosols to inflict injury isn't a new concept among New Zealand's youth. In 2016, the 'frosty challenge', which involved children burning themselves with aerosol cans, circulated among school-aged children. … Among Kiwi adolescents, self-harm is a serious issue. The Youth 2000 study - conducted in 2012 - surveyed 8500 high-school aged students and found 29.1 per cent of females and 17.9 per cent of males admitted they had harmed themselves. These figures increased from the previous study in 2007, which found 26 per cent of females and 15 per cent of males admitted to self-harming. Figures, previously obtained by Stuff under the Official Information Act showed an almost 20 per cent increase in the number of adolescent girls in hospital for self-inflicted injuries in New Zealand between 2014 and 2018. The figures showed a total of 1974 females aged between 15 and 19 years were discharged from hospital, compared to 532 males in 2017. There were a number of reasons why children and teenagers self-harm, according to the Kids Health website. These include coping with stress and anxiety, physically demonstrating emotional pain, self punishing, out of habit, to copy a friend, or try and make others listen to them. It can also be "part of an illness like borderline personality disorder or schizophrenia, or depression," the website stated.
