Wearing the proper gloves protects workers' hands from skin irritation, infection, burns, cuts and abrasions. Nitrile gloves prevent the wearer's hands from coming into direct contact with a variety of hazardous and abrasive materials. In addition to protecting the wearer, nitrile gloves protect any delicate materials being handled, such as electronics, metals and glass.
Before discussing the details of which substances nitrile gloves protect against, it is important to distinguish between incidental and extended contact. Use these definitions to distinguish between incidental and extended exposure scenarios.
Incidental exposure: Scenarios with minimal contact with hazardous substances, such as accidental splashes or spills, unintentional overspray from dispensers, and handling infectious agents that require barrier protection. In these cases, a barrier between the glove wearer and the material is all that is needed to avoid incidental exposure.
Prolonged exposure: Situations involving more prolonged exposure, such as contact with highly contaminated materials, immersion of hands in chemicals or other hazardous substances, exposure to extreme temperatures, and handling of sharp or piercing objects.
Specifically, nitrile gloves provide reliable splash protection against
Microorganisms: Nitrile gloves resist a wide range of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. Because of this reliable protection, nitrile rubber makes excellent surgical-grade medical gloves.
Oil, fuel and petroleum products: Nitrile gloves act as a barrier between the wearer's hands and potentially hazardous petroleum products such as oil, fuel and grease. This high level of protection makes nitrile gloves a popular choice for automotive, manufacturing and industrial uses.
Weak acids: Nitrile gloves protect the wearer from weak acids such as sulfuric and nitric acid. This resistance makes nitrile gloves versatile and practical in a variety of industries from pharmaceutical to food service.
Weak Alkalis: The term alkali refers to any substance that has the potential to cause corrosion. Nitrile gloves are resistant to mildly corrosive substances.
Some organic solvents: The resistance of nitrile lab gloves to many organic solvents makes them suitable for laboratory work and a variety of experiments.
If your nitrile gloves happen to become contaminated while you are wearing them, you must follow the proper contaminated glove disposal procedures as prescribed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) . Using proper glove removal techniques will help prevent cross-contamination.
Once your gloves are contaminated, follow these steps.
Grasp one glove by the outside of the wrist, being careful not to touch the skin.
Peel the glove off the body and pull it inward and outward.
Hold the glove you just removed in that gloved hand.
Slide your ungloved fingers into the glove still on the top of your wrist and begin to peel it off.
As you pull the second glove away from your body, turn it inside out, leaving the first glove in the second glove.
Handle gloves safely to ensure they are never reused.
Clean your hands immediately after removing the contaminated gloves.
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