Performance-Enhancing Materials in Medical Gloves (original) (raw)
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BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has created global shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as medical exam gloves, forcing healthcare workers to either forgo or reuse PPE to keep themselves and patients safe from infection. In severely resource-constrained situations, limited cycles of disinfection and extended use of gloves is recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conserve supplies. However, these guidelines are based on limited evidence.MethodsSerial cycles of hand hygiene were performed on gloved hands using alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) (six and ten cycles), 0.1% sodium hypochlorite (bleach) solution (ten cycles), or soap and water (ten cycles) on three types of latex and three types of nitrile medical exam gloves, purchased in the United States and India. A modified FDA-approved water-leak test was performed to evaluate glove integrity after repeated applications of these disinfecting agents. 80 gloves per disinfectant-glove t...
2021
The human cost of the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a great toll, and led, around the globe, to a shortage in personal protective equipment (PPE) such as medical exam gloves. To face this shortage and keep themselves and patients safe, many front-line healthcare providers have been overextending the life of PPE. Though not ideal, one pragmatic solution often used is the practice of sanitization and extended use of existing PPE. The data produced by these experiments should help determine an acceptable reusability window of PPE in a working environment, by which the effective use time may be extended and justified. The effect of repeated sanitization, using soap and water, on the mechanical performance was investigated for latex and nitrile elastomeric medical exam gloves. Tensile tests were performed for various manufacturer brands commonly used in the United States (Glovepak Europa, Polymed and Sempersure) and India (Surgiglove). Tensile test samples were prepared for each studied gl...
Revisiting Latex Gloves in Healthcare -A Post-Market Clinical Study
https://www.ijrrjournal.com/IJRR\_Vol.10\_Issue.3\_March2023/IJRR-Abstract42.html, 2023
Sterile Surgical Gloves are worn to prevent contamination of the patient during invasive procedures and they help prevent surgical site infections and reduce the risk of exposure to blood and body fluid pathogens for the healthcare worker. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the safety and performance of Sterile Latex Surgical Gloves-Powdered and Powder Free, Sterile Latex Gynaecological Gloves-Powdered and Powder Free. Overall, 976 subjects participated in the study, out of which sterile latex surgical gloves were used by the users in 288 cases. Sterile latex surgical gloves powder free was used by users in 291 cases. Sterile Latex Gynaecological Gloves Powdered were used by users in 201 cases and Sterile Latex Gynaecological Gloves Powder Free was used in196 cases. From the clinical safety parameter analysis, sterile latex surgical gloves were safe to use and none of the users reported safety-related issues. The overall rating given by the user for product performance was excellent for all the products. All the users agreed that the product is meeting the product quality. The overall rating given by the user for product satisfaction is Excellent. None of the users have reported any undesirable events.
Recent Advances in the Malaysia's Glove Industry in Meeting Today's healthcare Challenges
2001
Natural rubber medical gloves provide excellent barrier protection and offer unique flexibility, strength and elasticity are used to minimize healthcare workers exposure to contaminated blood and body fluids, as well as to reduce cross-infection during surgery. In recent years, however, the allergies of some individuals to the latex proteins in natural rubber gloves have caused concern to the medical professions and there is a shift in preference to more expensive powder-free latex gloves and gloves with low protein levels and also to synthetic gloves. Regulatory bodies are also imposing limits to the level of protein and powder in the gloves. This paper reports some of the advances made by the Malaysian glove manufacturers in producing quality gloves that meet the requirements of the consumers. These include the use of specially enzymatic treated natural rubber latex as starting material, adopting newer processing technologies with effective pre-and post-curing leaching, the control of acidity in leaching water and the use of ultrasonic device in leaching to manufacture gloves with minimal protein content. Exploratory studies of using treated corn-starch to reduce the absorbent properties of powder in powdered natural rubber gloves also produced encouraging results. Improved processing technologies of on-line chlorination and from single-surface to both side polymer coating of gloves have enabled more efficient production of powder-free gloves. To meet the needs of users who are already sensitized to proteins and have been advised to avoid natural rubber latex gloves, some of the manufacturers have commenced producing and exporting quality nitrile and polyurethane gloves. The introduction of a quality Standard Malaysian Glove scheme (SMG) for latex examination gloves (powdered and powder-free) with upper limits of protein and powder content is a major advancement to further minimise the risk of latex protein sensitisation.
Performance of latex and nonlatex medical examination gloves during simulated use
American Journal of Infection Control, 2002
Background: In response to the rise in latex allergies, gloves made from a variety of nonlatex materials have been introduced into the health care environment. To date, at least 1 study, by Rego and Roley (1999), has reported that both latex and nitrile medical examination gloves provide comparable barrier protective qualities. The purpose of our study was to determine the effects of glove stress, type of material (vinyl, nitrile, copolymer, latex), and manufacturer on the barrier effectiveness of medical examination gloves. Method: A total of 5510 medical examination gloves (1464 nitrile, 1052 latex, 1006 copolymer, and 1988 vinyl) were divided into 2 groups: stressed and unstressed. Unstressed gloves were visually inspected and water-tested according to the Food and Drug Administration water-testing standards. Stressed gloves were manipulated according to a designated stress protocol, visually inspected, and then subjected to the same Food and Drug Administration water-testing standards. Results: Our limited sample size demonstrated that nitrile gloves had the lowest failure rate (1.3%), followed by latex (2.2%); vinyl and copolymer gloves had the highest failure rate (both 8.2%). With use of a logistic regression analysis adjusting for manufacturer and stress, latex examination gloves were found to be 3 times more likely to fail than nitrile gloves (odds ratio, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.37-7.50). Nitrile gloves were also found to fail significantly less often than vinyl or copolymer gloves (odds ratio, 12.60; 95% CI, 5.80-27.40). Conclusions: Nitrile examination gloves are a suitable alternative to latex, whereas vinyl and copolymer examination gloves were found to be less effective barriers. Further research is indicated to determine whether nitrile gloves can provide effective barrier qualities during clinical use versus laboratory simulations.
The durability of examination gloves used on intensive care units
BMC Infectious Diseases, 2013
The use of examination gloves is part of the standard precautions to prevent medical staff from transmission of infectious agents between patients. Gloves also protect the staff from infectious agents originating from patients. Adequate protection, however, depends on intact gloves. The risk of perforation of examination gloves is thought to correlate with duration of wearing, yet, only very few prospective studies have been performed on this issue.
Modified gloves: A chance for the prevention of nosocomial infections
American Journal of Infection Control, 2018
Background: Non-sterile gloves primarily serve as a barrier protection for health care workers (HCWs). However, pathogens may often contaminate the skin of HCWs during glove removal; therefore, pathogens may be further transmitted and cause nosocomial infections. Methods: A field study was conducted comparing contamination rates when using standard gloves or a new modified product equipped with an additional flap (doffing aid) for easier removal. Gloves were removed after bathing gloved hands in an artificial fluorescent lotion. The number of contamination spots was then visually examined using ultraviolet light. Results: There were 317 individuals who participated in this study: 146 participants (104 nurses and 42 physicians) used standard gloves, whereas 171 participants (118 nurses and 53 physicians) used the modified product. Use of the modified gloves instead of the standard product (15.8% vs 73.3%, respectively; P < .001) and being a physician rather than a nurse (29.5% vs 47.7%, respectively; P = .003) were the only independent risk factors for reduction of contamination. Conclusions: This study shows that the modified product could, at least in vitro, significantly reduce the rate of hand and wrist contamination during removal compared with standard gloves. By this, it may significantly improve the overall quality of patient care when used on the wards directly at the patient's site.