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Published on: November 14, 2015
Implementing a nonlatex surgical glove study in the OR.
D M Korniewicz1, L Garzon, J Seltzer
1School of Nursing and School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA.
AORN Journal
|February 24, 2001
Summary
Nonlatex surgical gloves are increasingly used due to latex allergies. This study evaluates their barrier performance and healthcare worker satisfaction compared to traditional latex gloves after surgical use.
Area of Science:
- Surgical Safety
- Infection Control
- Materials Science in Healthcare
Background:
- Sterile surgical gloves are crucial for preventing patient and healthcare worker (HCW) infections and pathogen exposure.
- Rising latex allergy incidents have led to widespread adoption of nonlatex surgical gloves.
- Limited data exists on the real-world performance of nonlatex surgical gloves in surgical settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the barrier integrity of nonlatex surgical gloves post-use in surgical procedures.
- To evaluate healthcare worker satisfaction with nonlatex surgical gloves.
- To compare the performance of nonlatex versus latex surgical gloves.
Main Methods:
- Collection and barrier quality testing of 12,703 latex and nonlatex gloves from all surgical services.
- Ongoing data collection and analysis.
- Documentation of challenges faced by the research team.
Main Results:
- Data collection is ongoing, with 12,703 gloves tested to date.
- The study is actively evaluating barrier performance and HCW satisfaction.
- Challenges in data collection are being documented.
Conclusions:
- The study is actively investigating the performance and acceptance of nonlatex surgical gloves.
- Findings will inform the choice of surgical gloves to ensure patient and HCW safety.
- This research addresses a critical knowledge gap in surgical practice.
