Picric acid is used as a high explosive, an oxidant in rocket fuels, in matches and leather processing, as a laboratory reagent for serum creatinine analysis in humans and experimental animals. There is not much information related to pharmacological and biological application of picric acid. But is known, that during the 1920s-30s, it was used either alone or in combination with butyl aminobenzoate as an antiseptic dressing for burn wounds. About 4% of patients treated with picric acid developed sensitization local dermatitis and at least one case of serious central nervous system dysfunction occurred following topical picric acid application. Picric acid does not sensitize directly, but only after conversion to a more reactive compound. Picric acid was positive in the Ames salmonella assay for mutagenicity when metabolic activation was present. It has also been reported to be non-mutagenic in the Ames test. Those contradictory results did not allow to draw a conclusion on picric acid mutagenicity. A review by a committee of the Health Council of the Netherlands in 2002, did not find published data on long-term toxicity, carcinogenicity, or reproductive toxicity.