Relevance of surgical gloves in minor surgical procedures in the present scenario: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial

Abstract

Context: In developing countries, where money set aside for public health is Aim: The aim of the study was to ascertain whether it is necessary to use surgical gloves in routine minor surgical procedures. Materials and Methods: A comparative, prospective, randomized, double-blind study was carried out in 100 patients for various minor surgical procedures, performed aseptically. Microbiology specimens were taken from the glove's surfaces according to a standard protocol. An independent assessor, who was blinded for the procedure, examined the patients on the 7th postoperative day. Statistical Analysis Used: Statistical analysis was done using IBM SPSS Statistics 20 core system software. Paired t-test, unpaired t–test, and Karl Pearson's coefficient test were used to calculate the scientific data and association between variables. Results: A total of 100 patients who underwent minor surgical procedures were obtained at the end of the study. Paired t-test showed highly significant difference from pre- to post-operative colony-forming units at 1% level of significance (P Conclusions: The present study concluded that the use of surgical gloves does not offer a definite advantage in minimizing the rate of infections following various minor surgical procedures.