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Lovato MJ, Del Valle LJ, Puiggalí J, Franco L. Performance-Enhancing Materials in Medical Gloves. J Funct Biomater 2023; 14:349. [PMID: 37504844 PMCID: PMC10381443 DOI: 10.3390/jfb14070349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2023] [Revised: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Medical gloves, along with masks and gowns, serve as the initial line of defense against potentially infectious microorganisms and hazardous substances in the health sector. During the COVID-19 pandemic, medical gloves played a significant role, as they were widely utilized throughout society in daily activities as a preventive measure. These products demonstrated their value as important personal protection equipment (PPE) and reaffirmed their relevance as infection prevention tools. This review describes the evolution of medical gloves since the discovery of vulcanization by Charles Goodyear in 1839, which fostered the development of this industry. Regarding the current market, a comparison of the main properties, benefits, and drawbacks of the most widespread types of sanitary gloves is presented. The most common gloves are produced from natural rubber (NR), polyisoprene (IR), acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), polychloroprene (CR), polyethylene (PE), and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC). Furthermore, the environmental impacts of the conventional natural rubber glove manufacturing process and mitigation strategies, such as bioremediation and rubber recycling, are addressed. In order to create new medical gloves with improved properties, several biopolymers (e.g., poly(vinyl alcohol) and starch) and additives such as biodegradable fillers (e.g., cellulose and chitin), reinforcing fillers (e.g., silica and cellulose nanocrystals), and antimicrobial agents (e.g., biguanides and quaternary ammonium salts) have been evaluated. This paper covers these performance-enhancing materials and describes different innovative prototypes of gloves and coatings designed with them.
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Affiliation(s)
- María José Lovato
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Escola d'Enginyeria de Barcelona Est-EEBE, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, c/Eduard Maristany 10-14, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Luis J Del Valle
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Escola d'Enginyeria de Barcelona Est-EEBE, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, c/Eduard Maristany 10-14, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
- Center for Research in Nano-Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Campus Sud, Edifici C', c/Pasqual i Vila s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Puiggalí
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Escola d'Enginyeria de Barcelona Est-EEBE, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, c/Eduard Maristany 10-14, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
- Center for Research in Nano-Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Campus Sud, Edifici C', c/Pasqual i Vila s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lourdes Franco
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Escola d'Enginyeria de Barcelona Est-EEBE, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, c/Eduard Maristany 10-14, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
- Center for Research in Nano-Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Campus Sud, Edifici C', c/Pasqual i Vila s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
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Lee SY, Ng A, Jaswan Singh MS, Liew YK, Gan SN, Koh RY. Physicochemical and antimicrobial properties of natural rubber latex films in the presence of vegetable oil microemulsions. J Appl Polym Sci 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/app.44788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Siang Yin Lee
- School of Pharmacy; International Medical University; No. 126, Jalan Jalil Perkasa 19, Bukit Jalil Kuala Lumpur 57000 Malaysia
- Colloids and Interface Science Centre (CISC); Centre of Excellence (COE) RRIM Sungai Buloh Research Station Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB); Sungai Buloh Selangor 47000 Malaysia
| | - Angie Ng
- School of Pharmacy; International Medical University; No. 126, Jalan Jalil Perkasa 19, Bukit Jalil Kuala Lumpur 57000 Malaysia
| | - Manroshan Singh Jaswan Singh
- Colloids and Interface Science Centre (CISC); Centre of Excellence (COE) RRIM Sungai Buloh Research Station Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB); Sungai Buloh Selangor 47000 Malaysia
| | - Yun Khoon Liew
- School of Pharmacy; International Medical University; No. 126, Jalan Jalil Perkasa 19, Bukit Jalil Kuala Lumpur 57000 Malaysia
| | - Seng Neon Gan
- Department of Chemistry Faculty of Science; University of Malaya; Lembah Pantai Kuala Lumpur 50603 Malaysia
| | - Rhun Yian Koh
- School of Health Sciences; International Medical University; No. 126, Jalan Jalil Perkasa 19, Bukit Jalil Kuala Lumpur 57000 Malaysia
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