Disposable gloves are an essential part of any healthcare facility. They do not just protect the healthcare service provider and patients from exposure to potentially dangerous microbes, but they also help set a precedent of hygiene and care across the industry. Though this shouldn’t come as a surprise, you might not have realized that disposable gloves aren’t all equal. Gloves are made of different materials for certain products that are better suited for different medical environments. In case if you order the wrong glove for practice, you may end up wasting resources and increasing the risk of punctures, rips, and tears.
Disposable gloves are usually made from any one of these three material types: nitrile, latex, or vinyl. In this article, we’ll differentiate between Nitrile, Latex, and Vinyl Gloves. Also, get to know what type of gloves suits a specific type of environment. So, let’s look into it –
Latex Gloves –
Latex or natural rubber gloves are made up of the substance obtained from the sap of the Hevea Brasiliense tree. During manufacturing, chemicals are considered to induce latex elasticity and stability to heat by vulcanization. Moreover, the chemicals are commonly known as chemical accelerators. These are also added for strength and durability, including mercaptobenzothiazole, thiurams, and carbamates. Sometimes a dry powder lubricant is added to the surface of the latex to control the rubber surfaces from sticking altogether. Its soft and stretchy properties make it an ideal material that provides a proper fit to any palm size or shape.
With high levels of flexibility, protection, and comfort, disposable latex gloves are sustainable for most medical environments – if latex allergies are not an issue. These types of gloves are recommended as protection in the 1980s and 1990s against blood-borne pathogens like HIV.
Advantages –
- Comfort
- Very elastic and strong
- Good dexterity
- Acts and fits perfectly
- High level of Tactility
Disadvantages –
- Latex can be an allergen
- Lower resistance to punctures
- Lower chemical resistance
- Not as chemical resistant as nitrile.
Vinyl Gloves –
A synthetic man-made material, Vinyl is purely protein-free and imperishable. Vinyl gloves were the first synthetic alternative available, offering an allergic-free option to latex and composed of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and plasticizers. The process of polymerization is molecules of vinyl chloride that are linked together to form long polymer chains. They offer protection from chemicals and microorganisms but are suited for the short-term handling of harmless materials and chemicals. As fewer gloves are washed, it will make prone chemical residues available for potential contact with the user.
Vinyl gloves have also raised a red flag in terms of their conservation impression, as noted by Health and Safety International. When vinyl gloves are stretched or flexed, the respective molecules separate, and the virtue of the protective barrier is compromised.
Advantages –
- Latex Free
- Good for short-term, low-risk tasks
- Long shelf life
Disadvantages –
- Least dexterity due to stiffer & looser fit
- High rate of chemical permeation
- High chemical residue
- Susceptible to punctures/pinholes
- Do not offer much chemical resistance
- Powdered gloves cause skin irritation from extended use
Nitrile Gloves –
Man-made rubbered Nitrile Gloves come from a synthetic polymer produced from a copolymer of acrylonitrile and butadiene. High-quality nitrile gloves are much more similar to Mun Global and are often described as medical grade. Previously the nitrile gloves were very stiff but today they exhibit natural rubber-like characteristics to offer exceptional flexibility and sensitive fit. Nitrile gloves provide the same level of tensile strength and durability and are available in many colors. It provides easy identification of punctures and tears to the wearer when a breach occurs, ensuring they work well in high-level risk situations involving infectious material.
These gloves came to prominence in the 1990s as an important latex alternative. While they’re not as elastic or flexible as their latex counterparts, disposable nitrile gloves are especially more durable and resistant to chemicals. They are also perfectly suited for most medical environments, being remarkably puncture-resistant and eliminating the risk of latex allergy reactions.
Advantages –
- Latex-free gloves
- Excellent puncture resistance
- Wormed for more extended periods
- Work great for high-risk situations involving infectious material
- High chemical resistance
- A high level of durability and tactility
Disadvantages –
- The synthetic nitrile rubber polymer is also not cheap to produce as vinyl or latex.
Conclusion –
After understanding the key differences, advantages, and disadvantages of the three different types of gloves. Easy Aid Medical provides a wide variety of disposable vinyl, nitrile, and latex gloves for a multitude of uses and needs. Our gloves provide the strength and barrier protection needed by healthcare service providers. They provide the best health care products in India where you can shop for the required products as per your need.
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