Ammonium Lactate Topical
Ammonium lactate is a moisturizing skin treatment used to relieve dry, scaly skin and ichthyosis vulgaris, and to ease the itching that comes with these conditions.
🧬 Where this information comes from Click to expand
The clinical label records used on this page are FDA-filed Structured Product Labeling (SPL) retrieved through openFDA. We identified 12 clinical label sets within the page’s selected clinical scope after exact ingredient or ingredient-combination matching and applicable route/form matching. Forms, routes, brands, labelers, strengths, and NDC product-record counts are built separately from matching FDA National Drug Code Directory records. The linked DailyMed document is a representative official source for verification, not the page’s only clinical source. View the linked label on DailyMed →
📖 Ammonium Lactate Topical: Patient Information Guide
A plain-language walkthrough of Ammonium Lactate Topical — what it treats, how it works, how it’s taken, side effects, warnings and interactions. Tap any section to expand it.
🎯What it's used for▾
Ammonium lactate is a topical (applied to skin) moisturizing treatment approved for specific skin conditions. Supported uses include:
- Xerosis — dry, rough, scaly skin: Ammonium Lactate Cream, 12% helps restore moisture and improve skin texture.
- Ichthyosis vulgaris — an inherited condition causing persistent, fish-scale-like skin scaling: Ammonium Lactate Cream, 12% helps reduce scaling.
- Itching relief — temporary relief of itching associated with xerosis and ichthyosis vulgaris.
⚙️How it works▾
Lactic acid is an alpha-hydroxy acid — a type of naturally occurring acid found in the body. When applied to skin, it works as a humectant, drawing moisture into the outermost skin layer (the stratum corneum) to keep it hydrated and supple. It also appears to reduce the stickiness between dead skin cells, helping them shed more normally and reducing the buildup that causes scaling — though the exact process behind this is still being studied.
💊How it's taken▾
Apply ammonium lactate cream to the affected skin areas and rub in thoroughly. It is typically used twice a day, or as your doctor directs. If you are using the lotion form, shake it well before applying. There is no food timing requirement for a topical product. Follow your prescriber's specific instructions — they may adjust how often you apply it based on how your skin responds.
🤒Side effects — in detail▾
Most side effects from ammonium lactate cream are mild and occur right at the application site. Common reactions include:
- Burning or stinging (most common, especially at first)
- Skin irritation or redness
- Rash
- Itching
- Dry skin
If you develop a significant rash, severe irritation, or signs of an allergic reaction (like worsening redness, swelling, or hives), stop using the product and contact your doctor right away.
⚠️Warnings & precautions▾
Sun sensitivity is the key warning. Skin treated with ammonium lactate cream should not be exposed to sunlight (or artificial UV light like tanning beds) more than necessary. The treated areas can react more strongly to UV rays, increasing the risk of irritation or sunburn.
Stop using the product immediately if you notice any signs of an allergic reaction, such as a new or worsening rash, significant redness, or skin that is clearly getting worse rather than better.
🔀What it interacts with▾
The label does not identify specific drug or food interactions for ammonium lactate cream.
This is not a complete list of interactions. Always talk with your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping, or changing any medication.
📋Before taking it▾
- Allergy to ingredients: Do not use ammonium lactate if you have had an allergic reaction to any component of the product in the past.
- Sun exposure: Let your doctor know if you spend significant time outdoors or use tanning beds — you will need to be especially careful to protect treated skin from UV light.
🚑If you take too much▾
Because ammonium lactate is applied to the skin rather than swallowed, accidental overdose through normal use is not a practical concern. Animal studies using very large oral (swallowed) amounts showed the product to be essentially non-toxic.
📡Pharmacodynamics — effects in the body▾
Ammonium lactate cream works directly on the skin's surface. It helps the outer skin layer (stratum corneum) hold onto more water, improving hydration and making dry, rough skin feel softer. It also appears to reduce the cohesion — or stickiness — between dead skin cells, which helps normalize the shedding process and reduce visible scaling in conditions like ichthyosis vulgaris and xerosis.
🔬Pharmacokinetics — how your body processes it▾
Ammonium lactate is absorbed through the skin to a limited extent. An in vitro (laboratory) study using human cadaver skin found that approximately 6.1% of the applied ammonium lactate cream was absorbed after 68 hours, suggesting most of it stays at the skin surface where it is needed.
📦How to store it▾
Store between 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F) .
📄 Written from Ammonium Lactate Topical’s FDA-approved label information, summarized in plain language with AI, and reviewed by our pharmacy team before publication. Every point is grounded in that labeling — nothing is invented. How we use AI →
🩺 Pharmacist Counseling Corner
Quick, plain-English answers to the questions patients ask most about Ammonium Lactate Topical — the kind of thing our pharmacy team would talk through with you at the counter.
What exactly is ammonium lactate cream used for? ▾
How do I apply it and how often should I use it? ▾
Will it burn or sting when I put it on? ▾
Do I need to worry about going out in the sun while using this? ▾
Can I have an allergic reaction to this cream? ▾
How long does it take to start working? ▾
Is Ammonium Lactate Topical available over the counter? ▾
When was Ammonium Lactate Topical first available? ▾
Who makes Ammonium Lactate Topical? ▾
💬 Answers drafted from Ammonium Lactate Topical’s FDA-approved label information, summarized in plain language with AI, and reviewed by our pharmacy team before publication. Grounded in that labeling — nothing is made up. How we use AI →
🧰 Keep exploring
💊 How Ammonium Lactate Topical comes
Ammonium Lactate Topical is available in 1 form. Different forms and brands can have different approved uses, doses, schedules, and directions. Follow the instructions for your exact product, and do not switch forms without guidance from your prescriber or pharmacist.
Topical cream, ointment or gel
How this form is used
- Ammonium Lactate Cream, 12% treats dry, scaly skin (xerosis)
- Ammonium Lactate Cream, 12% treats ichthyosis vulgaris (an inherited scaling skin condition)
- Ammonium Lactate Cream, 12% temporarily relieves itching associated with these conditions
- Ammonium Lactate: apply to affected skin areas and rub in thoroughly
- Ammonium Lactate: use twice daily or as directed by your doctor
- Ammonium Lactate: shake the lotion form well before each use
- Ammonium Lactate: minimize or avoid sun exposure on treated skin areas while using this product
📊 Ammonium Lactate Topical across the U.S. market
How Ammonium Lactate Topical appears in the FDA’s National Drug Code Directory — including its dosage forms, strengths, brand names, manufacturers, and FDA-listed product records. These are directory records, not sales or prescription volume.
Share of FDA-listed product records by manufacturer — FDA National Drug Code Directory. Record counts are not sales or prescription volume.
📈 How widely Ammonium Lactate Topical is used
A general measure of how commonly Ammonium Lactate Topical is prescribed, based on Medicaid — one of the largest public drug programs. The figure below is prescriptions filled in Q1–Q4 2025, summed across every form and brand of the drug.
Think of this as a proxy for how widely Ammonium Lactate Topical is used, drawn from freely available public data. Medicaid is just one program — these numbers don’t include Medicare, other government coverage, or commercial and cash-pay prescriptions, so real-world use is higher than what’s shown here.
How commonly is Ammonium Lactate Topical prescribed? Of the 1,597 medications we measure, Ammonium Lactate Topical ranks #342 by Medicaid prescriptions — more than 79% of them.
Source: Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data (CMS), aggregated by generic ingredient — summed across every NDC (all brands, strengths, salt forms and dosage forms) of Ammonium Lactate Topical, and across all states and both fee-for-service and managed-care claims. A general popularity signal; it excludes Medicare, commercial insurance and cash prescriptions, so it is not total U.S. use. Based on the 8 of 20 listed Ammonium Lactate Topical NDCs with Medicaid activity.
🔍 Compare Ammonium Lactate Topical products
A representative set of FDA-listed product records for Ammonium Lactate Topical — across manufacturers, strengths, and dosage forms, grouped by form with each product’s manufacturer and how the FDA approved it. The same medicine may be made and packaged by different companies, so a single drug can have many directory entries. (It’s also why a refill can look different — a new shape, color, or box — even though it contains the same medication.)
| Strength | Route | Manufacturer / Labeler | Category ⓘ | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💊Topical cream, ointment or gel | ||||
| 120 mg/g | Topical | A-S Medication Solutions | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 12 g/100 g | Topical | Bryant Ranch Prepack × 11 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 12 g/100 g | Topical | Padagis Israel Pharmaceuticals Ltd × 6 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 120 mg/g | Topical | Remedyrepack Inc. × 2 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 120 mg/g | Topical | Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc. × 4 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 120 mg/g | Topical | Taro Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. × 3 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
Showing 27 of 27 products — FDA National Drug Code Directory. See every product, package size and price: browse all 27 Ammonium Lactate Topical NDCs →
📈 What people report — real-world data (FDA FAERS)
After a medicine reaches the market, patients, doctors and drugmakers can send the FDA reports of problems they think may be linked to it. Here’s what’s been reported for Ammonium Lactate Topical — a signal of what to watch for, not proof the drug caused it.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). These are voluntary reports — they don’t prove the drug caused the effect, and counts reflect how often something was reported, not how often it actually happens. Reports also often name the very problem the medicine is taken for — a common reason to file one is that the drug didn’t help — so for a pain reliever you may see “pain” high on the list; that points to why the report was filed, not to the drug causing the symptom. This counts every report that lists Ammonium Lactate Topical in any role, so the total runs higher than the FDA’s official dashboard, which counts only cases where the drug is the suspect. For the authoritative figures, see the FDA FAERS Public Dashboard. Always talk to your pharmacist or doctor.
🏛️ The road to your pharmacy
How Ammonium Lactate Topical went from FDA review to the pharmacy shelf — the key milestones in its regulatory journey.
Source: Drugs@FDA.
🚨 Recall history
A recall is when a specific batch of a medicine is pulled from the market — usually a manufacturing issue, not a problem with the drug itself. Class I is most serious, Class III least.
Source: openFDA drug enforcement (recall) reports.
📦 Supply & shortage status
Whether Ammonium Lactate Topical is in short supply in the U.S. right now, plus any shortage history the FDA has on record. A shortage usually reflects a manufacturing or demand issue — not a safety problem with the drug.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Drug Shortages database.
🏷️ Sold under these brand names
🏭 Manufacturers & labelers
RxNorm drug class
Ammonium Lactate Topical belongs to the Organic acids class.
Classified by RxNorm RxClass — the U.S. National Library of Medicine's standardized drug-classification service (Established Pharmacologic Class from the FDA, the ATC drug family from the WHO, and mechanism of action). Reference only, not medical advice.
🔬 Where this comes from
Core label, product, RxNorm, safety, and utilization data on this page come from the sources identified below. AI-written, editorial, and licensed sections are labeled separately.
How we combine label and product data
HelloPharmacist combines public FDA and NLM records; we don’t author the underlying clinical facts. We identified 12 FDA-filed SPL label sets within the page’s selected clinical scope after exact ingredient or ingredient-combination matching and applicable route/form matching. The representative label is the starting point for the displayed reference monograph; the 12 largest stored in-scope SPL records, which may include that representative, are compared section by section, and the longest available version of each section is retained. Forms, routes, brands, labelers, product-listed strengths, and product-record counts are aggregated separately from ingredient-matched FDA NDC Directory records; package records listed above are associated with the linked SPL; and the normalized concept hierarchy comes from NLM RxNorm.
Where a section is identified as AI-written, its plain-language text is generated from bounded label evidence. New draft drug pages remain in the admin review queue before first publication. Taro Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. is the representative DailyMed label linked for verification and dates; it is not the sole source used for the page.
This is general education, not medical advice — always consult your doctor or pharmacist about your medications and any medical condition. For the exact wording of the linked representative label, view that label on DailyMed; some displayed composite sections may come from other in-scope SPL labels. Learn how we use AI and our data sources & update cadence.