Manufacture Of Gloves Research Articles

THE INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE ON LATEX

Development of the medical glove has revolutionized protection of health care providers and patient. The manufacture of latex gloves involves the combination of a complex raw material, a variety of chemical additives, and multiparameter processes developed to meet customer requirements. Dermal compatibility issues related to these chemicals have been known since the 1930s, when the first cases of irritant and allergic contact dermatitis due to a variety of rubber products were first documented. With occupational exposure to hepatitis and HIV, there has been a re-emphasis on the importance of hand protection. As would be expected, the increased glove usage has resulted in an increase in frequency of irritant and allergic contact dermatitis (delayed Type IV); however, it is the occurrence and rising incidences of immediate Type I hypersensitivity to allergenic proteins from natural rubber that have caused the greatest concern. Research on this issue is slowed because sensitized individuals recognize different peptide antigens and not all have routine (consistent) latex contact, occupational or otherwise. It is proposed in this article that the cause is multifaceted. This additive approach includes agricultural yield, ripening and fumigation practices, environmental-protection concerns, exposure to powder vehicles of inflammation, chemical contact sensitizers and protein allergens, hospital sterilization practices, rapid supply-demand resolution (i.e., use of poor quality gloves), and increased latex exposure. The result is that individuals become more susceptible and are exposed to more sensitizing allergens, which pushes them toward their threshold of reaction decades before the amount of exposure would have reached the same level in the past. To provide a safe, functional hand covering, manufacturers must endeavor to create hand protection that is durable, biocompatible, and effective. Protection of the health care provider and patient is the primary concern.

A new hazard of cornstarch, an absorbable dusting powder

Cornstarch is currently the only powder used in the manufacture of surgical and examination gloves. The purpose of this study was to determine If cornstarch damages local tissue defenses in contaminated wounds. It was found that in contaminated wounds, cornstarch enhanced the growth of bacteria and elicited exaggerated inflammatory responses as measured by wound induration. As a result of this investigation, we do not recommend the use of gloves with cornstarch powders.

Contact urticaria and rhinitis from latex surgical gloves

Latex used in the manufacture of surgical gloves should be included in a list of allergens. It is found in the tree Hevea braziliensis. For approximately the last year, minutes after using surgical gloves, a female doctor had severe pruritus followed by a rash and angio-oedema of the contact areas. During the last 4 months, on opening the glove-bag, she experienced severe rhinitis and respiratory distress. The symptoms ceased in 1 h. Standard patch tests and with substances used in the manufacture of rubber were negative. Prick tests with glove and natural latex were strongly positive. The presence of specific IgE against natural latex was demonstrated by means of a histamine release assay as well as by immunoenzymatic methods. The antigen seems to have a MW higher than 30,000 d and is trypsin-sensitive. These facts suggest that the allergen could be a protein present in the "crude natural latex".

New techniques used in the production of cosmetic gloves.

Owing to inadequacies in conventional procedures for the manufacture of cosmttic gloves it has been necessary to devise a new process for their production. The new process allows the making of cosmetic gloves to a specific shape by means of a simple dipping process and facilitates various other aspects of glove production.

Granulomatous peritonitis caused by starch glove powder.

Starch granulomatous peritonitis caused by starch deposited by surgeons' gloves resulted in reoperation on three patients. The diagnosis was made from histological sections of biopsies which showed starch granules within foreign body giant cells. Peritoneal fluid was also found to contain many typical starch granules, identified by staining properties and the Maltese cross configuration, which is seen when the granules are viewed through crossed polarizing filters. Anti-inflammatory steroids were administered to two of the patients with dramatic improvement. Starch continues to be the most commonly employed nonstick agent in the manufacture of sterile gloves, and it must be removed before operating if starch peritonitis is to be avoided. The complication appears to be the result of a hypersensitivity reaction and is best treated nonsurgically.

Women in the Labor Force

T HE need which the present-day industrial structure has for women's work is indicated by the extent to which they are in paid employment-about 16.5 million in 1946, an unprecedented peacetime number constituting almost 30 per cent of the Nation's employed. An understanding of the industries and occupations in which women are employed and of the changes since the opening of the century cannot be gained without some reference to certain basic developments in the economy. Among the more significant developments is the gradual transition from home to factory production, which is still taking place. It was only within recent years that the manufacture of gloves, concentrated in Gloversville, New York, and of candlewick bedspreads, centered in Georgia, was transferred from home to factory. Vestiges of industrial homework are still with us, though this country's advance in its elimination and control far outstrips progress in many other countries. Affecting more than the removal from the home of occupations pursued for cash remuneration, the transition to factory production has meant the decline of the home as an economic unit where formerly many goods and services for the family's use were produced by women family members. While the original impetus for many women was the need to follow their work into the factory, economic custom has since jelled these occupations as women's work.