Q. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO ORDER A PRODUCT TO ENSURE THE FASTEST DELIVERY?
A. Whether you order online, by mail, fax, phone, or e-mail, DELTA
ships the majority of its in stock orders the same day they are
received. Ground services orders go by either UPS or FedEx and arrive
within 1 to 5 business days, depending on where you are located. All
special delivery services are available to our customers for an extra
fee.
Q. WHAT MAKES ONE TYPE OF GLOVE LESS PENETRABLE TO A VIRUS OR BLOOD BORNE PATHOGEN THAN ANOTHER?
A. Just as your skin has pores, so do the surfaces of vinyl, latex,
and nitrile copolymer gloves. Of the three different glove types, vinyl
is the most porous, allowing more chance for penetration by larger
molecules in comparison to latex or nitrile. See Viral Penetration Chart
comparing vinyl, latex, and nitrile.
Q. WHAT PRODUCTS CONTAIN LATEX?
A. There are numerous products that contain latex. Some examples of
household products that may contain latex are: balloons, pacifiers,
rubber bands, adhesives (envelope and stamp backings), condoms, elastic
diapers, art supplies, beach toys, balls, baby bottle nipples, chewing
gum, band-aids, rubber buttons on remote controls and calculators, eye
pieces on cameras and binoculars, bathmats, shoe soles, and tires.
Some examples of products in the healthcare environment that may
contain latex are: gloves, dental dams, catheters, tourniquets, elastic
bandages, IV tubing injection ports, medication vials, band-aids, bulb
syringes, tapes, masks, and stethoscopes.
Q. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF LATEX SENSITIVITY?
A. There are three different types of latex sensitivity:
- Irritation: Irritated skin may be dry, cracked, and crusty. It
will normally clear up soon after contact with latex is discontinued.
- Delayed Hypersensitivity (Type 4, Allergic Contact Dermatitis): Irritation that
erupts with sores or blisters, response occurring within 6-48 hours after contact
with latex. - Immediate Hypersensitivity (Type 1, Anaphylactic Allergic Reaction): Can present hives and migrate beyond the point of initial contact. Can include any of the following: itchy, watery eyes; swelling of the throat, lips, or tongue; abdominal pain; nausea; breathlessness; shock - Potentially life threatening.
Q. HOW CAN LATEX SENSITIVITY OCCUR?
A. Latex sensitization can occur by:
- Continued exposure and contact with latex products: Even if you
are not currently sensitive to latex, continued exposure and contact
could result in a sudden allergic sensitivity. Exposure to latex can
occur when products containing rubber come into contact with the skin or
mucous membranes such as the eyes, mouth, genitals, or rectum.
- Breathing airborne latex proteins: which are generally found in cornstarch powdered products, such as gloves powdered to promote easy donning. Each time a powdered glove is used, latex proteins attached to the molecules in the cornstarch powder are released into the air and can remain airborne and be inhaled for up to 12 hours.
Q. WHO IS MOST AT RISK FOR DEVELOPING A LATEX ALLERGY?
A. Any individual or professional who comes in contact with latex
products. Examples: Spina Bifida / Multiple Surgery Patients:
Sensitization may occur from repeated and intense exposure to latex
during multiple surgeries, tests, and examinations. Health Care
Professionals and Community Care Providers, such as school, day care,
and camp personnel.
Q. WHAT DOES NSF CERTIFIED MEAN?
A. NSF International
, The Public Health and Safety Company™, a not-for-profit,
non-governmental organization, is the world leader in standards
development, product certification, education, and risk-management for
public health and safety. For 60 years, NSF has been committed to public
health, safety, and protection of the environment. While focusing on
food, water, indoor air, and the environment, NSF develops national
standards, provides learning opportunities through its Center for Public
Health Education, and provides third-party conformity assessment
services while representing the interests of all stakeholders. The
primary stakeholder groups include industry, the regulatory community,
and the public at large.
NSF is widely recognized for its scientific and technical expertise in
the health and environmental sciences. Its professional staff includes
engineers, chemists, toxicologists, and environmental health
professionals with broad experience both in public and private
organizations.
NSF has earned the Collaborating Center designations by the World
Health Organization (WHO) for Food and Water Safety and Indoor
Environment. Serving manufacturers operating in 80 countries, NSF was
founded in 1944 and is headquartered in Ann Arbor, MI USA. The NSF Mark
is recognized for its value in international trade around the world.
The Food Service Industry is
starting to realize that utilizing the safest, highest quality products
in food preparation is paramount to the health of the consumer. In
addition, OmniShield™ Food Service Gloves are DOP/DEHP FREE which also
protects the wearer from harm other gloves cannot provide. OmniShield™
FOOD SERVICE GLOVES are the premiere products for the food service
industry.
Q. WHAT IS DOP/DEHP AND HOW DOES IT AFFECT ME?
A. DEHP (di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate) sometimes known as DOP (di-octyl
phthalate) is a commonly used plasticizer from the phthalate ester
family and has been in use in flexible PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride)
products since the 1930’s. Flexible PVC products for building,
automotive, medical and packaging applications usually contain
phthalates.
As phthalates have been used for such a long time, they continue to
be closely studied to ensure that their use is safe. It has been known
for many years that small amounts of plasticizers can leach out of the
products under certain circumstances.
In 2000, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for
Research on Cancer (IARC) reclassified DEHP, the most commonly used
plasticizer in flexible PVC products as non-carcinogenic to humans.
Previous to that, in 1982 they had classified these plasticizers as
“possibly carcinogenic to humans”. In 1990 the European Commission
established its own position that DEHP shall not be labeled or
classified as a carcinogen based on studies which showed differences in
how species respond to DEHP.
In 2003 the CDC released a report on phthalates that confirmed that
median exposures to phthalates were well below levels that could be
expected to cause health effects, based on exposure level study using
blood and urine tests.
There is no evidence that anyone has been harmed by exposure to
phthalate plasticizers. Nevertheless, scientific uncertainty about the
potential for phthalates to disrupt the human endocrine system or
reproductive development has led to significant ongoing debate about
their safety. Eighty six hospitals and GPO’s in 12 states have pledged
to reduce the use of PVC and/or DEHP. |