Glove allergy - symptoms and alternatives to latex gloves

Anyone who has to wear gloves in a cleanroom or ESD area may be confronted with the problem of a glove allergy. Many people are familiar with a latex allergy, for example, which some people suffer from when wearing latex gloves. In this article, you can find out what symptoms occur with an allergy to gloves, what alternatives there are to latex gloves in particular and what other glove allergies exist.

Various reactions to gloves

A glove allergy can be caused by various substances that may be contained in the gloves, including latex. However, non-allergic irritant contact dermatitis, i.e. skin inflammation caused by irritation, can also occur with all glove materials. Basically, three different reactions can occur when wearing gloves, depending on the material:

Non-allergic irritant contact dermatitis (triggered by chemicals, for example)
Allergic contact dermatitis (triggered by plasticizers, vulcanization accelerators and other substances, but also by latex)
Natural latex allergy, also known as protein allergy (in the case of natural latex gloves)

Glove allergy – symptoms and alternatives to latex gloves

Non-allergic irritant contact dermatitis caused by wearing gloves

Non-allergic irritant contact dermatitis is caused, for example, by chemicals used in glove production, the powder or endotoxins that come from the supply of production water. The following symptoms can be caused by wearing gloves in the case of non-allergic irritant contact dermatitis:

Burning
red areas of skin
Itching

Glove-related allergic contact dermatitis

Allergic contact dermatitis can be caused by vulcanization accelerators, plasticizers, stabilizers, antioxidants, biocides, preservatives, process accelerators and other substances found in or on the gloves. Latex itself can also trigger allergic contact dermatitis.

Anyone who uses latex gloves and suffers allergic reactions may therefore not be allergic to the latex, but to the plasticizers, vulcanization accelerators or other substances contained in the gloves. Plasticizers and vulcanization accelerators are also found in nitrile gloves. However, if you are allergic to vulcanization accelerators, you can use special nitrile gloves that do not contain such accelerators.

The following symptoms can occur with a contact allergy to vulcanization accelerators, for example:

blotchy reddening of the skin
Itching
Swelling
Formation of vesicles

Vinyl gloves can be an alternative to latex gloves in the case of a latex allergy as well as an alternative to gloves that contain vulcanization accelerators. However, vinyl gloves usually contain plasticizers, such as phthalates, which can also lead to allergic reactions, including the following symptoms:

Burning
Reddening of the skin
Itching
weeping blisters
Quaddles

Glove allergy to latex (natural latex allergy)

A natural latex allergy is an allergy to latex proteins, which is why it is also referred to as a protein allergy. This allergy can even lead to anaphylactic shock, which in the worst case can be fatal.

The following symptoms can occur with a natural latex allergy (protein allergy), among others:

Severe itching of the skin
Tingling of the skin
Inflammation of the nasal mucosa
Conjunctivitis
Swelling of the skin surface and larynx
Tissue dropsy
Abdominal cramps
General itching
Nettle fever
Hives
Nausea
Diarrhea
severe palpitations
Cessation of heartbeat and breathing
Dizzy spells
Low blood pressure
asthma-like symptoms
Cramping of the airways
extreme breathing difficulties

Nitrile gloves as an alternative if you are allergic to latex gloves

Latex gloves were widely used in the cleanroom sector in particular. However, these gloves are a major problem for people who are allergic to latex. Today, however, there is an alternative to latex gloves in the form of the increasingly popular nitrile gloves, as allergies to nitrile are less common and this artificially produced synthetic rubber is now produced at affordable prices.

Please also read our article “Nitrile gloves vs. latex gloves – why the trend is towards nitrile“.

Since some allergic reactions when wearing nitrile gloves – as already mentioned – are due to the vulcanization accelerators they contain, care should be taken to ensure that no such vulcanization accelerators are contained in the nitrile glove in question. Vulcanization accelerators – also known as accelerators – include aldehyde amines, benzothiazoles, dithiocarbamates, dithiophosphates, guanidines, mercaptobenzothiazole, paraphenylenediamines, thiazoles, thiocabamyl sulfenamides, thirourea and thiurams.

The following nitrile gloves are vulcanization accelerator-free:

Nitrile gloves CELOS Glove 1.10
Nitrile gloves PUREZERO HG3 (typical particle value <950 per cm² = 0.5 µm)
Nitrile gloves PUREZERO HG3 (typical particle value <1200 per cm² = 0.5 µm)
Gloves SHIELDskin Orange Xtreme Nitrile 300 DI

Use powder-free gloves

In the event of skin irritation when using powdered gloves, you can also try using powder-free gloves first. This is because powder can trigger reactions in the context of non-allergic contact dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis and latex allergy (protein allergy). Powder can also be inhaled through the air and thus trigger or intensify allergic symptoms.

Anyone who already knows that they have a latex allergy, for example because of a medical diagnosis, or who suspects a latex allergy, should not use powdered or powder-free latex gloves. This is because an allergic reaction to latex can – as already mentioned – lead to anaphylactic shock, which can be fatal in the worst case scenario.