Because of the AIDS epidemic, the concern of healthcare workers and patients about medical gloves’ quality and barrier effectiveness has increased in recent years.
The relative merits of nitrile, latex and vinyl as a barrier to transmission of infectious agents, especially viruses, had been examined by studies. For being a successful barrier, a particular material must prevent penetration. Such as the passage of pathogens, through closures, permeable materials, seams, and pinholes or other faultiness in the barrier material. When penetration happens in a medical glove, it is through imperfection in the material, like pinholes, tears, etc. Other important factors in barrier efficiency contain the resistance of a glove material to mechanical stress. Resistance to chemical collapse by agents such as disinfectants and alcohol used to prepare and clean an operating room is also important. Glove quality is appraised in order to guarantee strength, durability, and reliability during clinical use.
Researchers made a lot of studies about gloves’ integrity. They have found that virus penetration happened in 5 – 10% of control gloves, whether latex or vinyl. Gloves were subjected to three different levels of use designed to imitate glove stresses during clinical patient care.
When vinyl and latex gloves were given needlestick punctures meant to serve as positive controls to measure virus leakage, an unexpected result occurred in this study. Visual and viral leaks is formed only in the vinyl gloves, and not in any of the latex gloves. The researchers ascribed this result to the elastic resealing property of latex.
Other studies have used dye exclusion to estimate glove barrier protection properties. In another study, vinyl and latex gloves were subjected to stresses designed to simulate 15 minutes of clinical activity in an intensive care unit. When tested for dye exclusion, testers found that a failure rate of 53% for vinyl gloves, compared to 3% for latex gloves.
Nitrile gloves are the most protective gloves when they compared with vinyl and latex gloves. Nitrile gloves are prefered by healthcare workers and patients more than other types of medical gloves because of their barrier protection properties.
Examination gloves manufactured from natural latex. They have been the superior glove choice to date in dental practice. However, concerns over hypersensitivity have resulted in the use of alternative gloves such as nitrile gloves. The aim of the current studies were to assess the incidence of pre-existing pinhole defects in nitrile examination gloves.
The men and women involved in law enforcement face some of the most significant challenges imaginable during the course of their careers. Therefore, it is important that these dedicated professionals have available to them the very best in protective equipment, gear and clothing.