Evaluation of sterile glove usage on digital tactile sensitivity using the Grating Orientation Task

Abstract

Introduction: Surgical glove use may be associated with a decrease in tactile sensitivity, with thicker gloves or double-gloving techniques further altering sensation. This study evaluates digital tactile sensitivity by use of a Grating Orientation Task (GOT) with multiple sterile gloving techniques (no gloves, single standard gloving, double standard gloving, orthopedic gloves, and micro-thickness gloves).

Methods: Each participant performed the GOT at increasing grating widths until correctly noting orientation in ≥8 of 10 trials with multiple glove types or double-gloving technique. Glove order was randomly assigned and participants were blinded to the orientation and dome size.

Results: All gloves except micro-thickness gloves showed increased threshold sensitivity values (i.e. worse fingertip sensitivity) when compared to control (micro:control, p = 0.105, others:control, p < 0.05). Single-layer gloves showed no significant difference in sensitivity when compared to orthopedic (p = 0.06) or double-layer latex gloves (p = 0.26).

Discussion: Standard latex gloves decreased fingertip sensitivity when evaluated with the GOT. Double-layer and orthopedic latex gloves do not decrease sensitivity when compared with single-layer gloving. Micro-thickness gloves may provide similar tactile sensitivity to no surgical glove.

Keywords: Grating Orientation Task; double-gloving; sterile glove; surgical glove; tactile sensitivity.

Figure 1

JVP domes (Stoelting Co.), sizes ranging from 0.35 mm (top left) to 3.0 mm (bottom right) in vertical and horizontal orientations.

Figure 2

Threshold sensitivity values (mean ± standard error from the mean) for each gloving category evaluated. Asterisks indicate a statistically significant difference in threshold sensitivity between groups (p < 0.05).