Evaluation of the integrity of latex gloves after dental treatment

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the integrity of latex gloves used by undergraduates after routine dental treatment. Methods: The sample was composed by 82 latex gloves used by 41 male and female right-handers undergraduate dental students from the 6th and 8th semesters from the State University of Paraíba. For examination of the integrity of the gloves, a single examiner insufflated the gloves with basic fuchsine diluted in water and then checked the occurrence of leaks, indicating perforations. The results were recorded in a specific form and were statistically analyzed by the chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests at 5% significance level. Results: 15.8% of the gloves presentedperforations. Procedures performed in clinics of Pediatric Dentistry and Periodontics caused the largest number of perforated gloves, 27.8% and 22.2%, respectively. The left hand (non-dominant hand) presented a larger number of perforations (53.8%) than the right hand, though without statistically significant difference (p = 1.000). The fingers were the most frequently perforated region of the gloves (61.5%). There was no statistically significant difference between the presence of perforation and the glove commercial brand (p = 0.329). Only 30.8% of the students that presented perforated gloves had realized the existence of perforations/tears. Conclusion: There was a high frequency ofperforated gloves in the analyzed sample, and the perforations were most common in the fingers of the non-dominant hand.