The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wants to ban powdered surgical gloves which it holds responsible for serious health risks for patients and healthcare professionals, according to a communicated. Indeed, the powder composing these gloves would cause respiratory problems.
Significant risks
Powder is sometimes added to gloves to make them easier to put on and take off. But this material may contain proteins that cause allergic reactions which lead to respiratory problems. This is because these proteins can inflame the airways and the tissue that forms between internal organs after surgery.
The risks posed by powdered gloves cannot be eliminated with new updates to warning labels, which is why the FDA has chosen to propose a ban on this medical device.
“This ban is intended to protect patients and healthcare professionals from a hazard they might not even be aware of,” says Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiation Health.
“We take bans very seriously and only make this decision when we believe it is necessary to protect public health,” he added.
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