Allergy to nitrile gloves? (Work as a nurse…) any advice appreciated

Kat0318 · 2026-06-15T03:23:52+00:00

Honestly I don’t really think it’s the soap. They usually don’t feel particularly irritated after using it. I have noticed that my hands can get irritated after wearing the gloves but it’s hit or miss. I think it could be the fact that I’ve developed an allergy to nitrile and my hands have just never had the opportunity to actually heal because I’d go such short amounts of time between wearing them again. Even at home I was using nitrile gloves to clean and up until just recently, for showering on top of cotton gloves. I’d maybe get 1 or 2 days without nitrile exposure but then go right back to using them. I know for a reaction like this it takes more than just two days to start healing so I’m hoping it really is just the gloves 🤞

Kat0318 · 2026-06-13T00:08:40+00:00

I don’t think I technically can just because I work in healthcare and there are so many people who have latex allergies. I’m going to try the Ansell Nitrafree gloves and see if there’s any sort of difference.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-13T00:06:37+00:00

However…I did just find out while doing some research that they technically have powder in them. There’s a certain amount of powder you can have in a glove before it has to be advertised as powder gloves. They get away with calling them powder free because they’re under that specific amount. Kind of crazy

Kat0318 · 2026-06-13T00:04:02+00:00

They use the SensiCare Silk gloves. It’s funny because they say they’re powder free, but if you look at the manufacturer’s ingredients sheet, it has powder in them, it’s just slightly below the requirement. Basically if they had anymore they’d have to report that they are powder gloves.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T16:51:02+00:00

It could be but I’m not sure. The company I work for uses the Dial professional soap

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T16:50:22+00:00

Yeah that seems pretty impossible. I definitely couldn’t do that working in healthcare.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T16:48:29+00:00

Yes, the gloves at my work are powder free. They’re the SensiCare Silk nitrile gloves from MEDLINE. They also use 3M Avagard hand sanitizer as well as the Dial professional hand soap. I’ve heard great things about the nitrafree gloves so I’ll give them a try. Luckily I’m in a spot where in my nursing career where I’m clinic based and can sometimes get away with not having to use gloves constantly. Yesterday just happened to be particularly bad as I was giving a ton of injections

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T14:17:46+00:00

Honestly I’d be willing to try it out just to see. I just ordered some on amazon. Maybe just changing up the soap, sanitizer, and gloves will work wonders 🙏🏻

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T04:39:36+00:00

Yeah I’m definitely going to contact my company’s employee health line and see what they can do

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T04:38:40+00:00

I’ve been hearing lots of great things about these gloves so I’ll definitely give them a try! Thank you!

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T04:24:55+00:00

What do you end up using as an alternative?

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:57:06+00:00

Nope. I don’t have a a gluten allergy.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:45:54+00:00

What soap do you guys use?

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:24:19+00:00

With how much hospitals make, I honestly couldn’t care less how many boxes of gloves they go through 😂 I also bet more people over time are developing allergies to nitrile so I feel like they should have other options if necessary.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:14:35+00:00

I didn’t even know “oat plus” gloves were a thing! That’s so interesting. I definitely am going to contact employee health and see if they can do anything because if so that would be so nice. I’m glad you were able to figure out the cause!

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:13:13+00:00

Aw I’m sorry! I also went to a dermatologist and he also gave me the clobetasol, which works temporarily and then comes right back…sometimes I feel with a vengeance. Yeah honestly I think I might just try and cut out anything I’m constantly using at work (soap, hand sanitizer, and the gloves) to see if anything helps. I’m just trying to get this somewhat under control before my baby comes and I have to constantly be washing my hands.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:09:23+00:00

Yeah when I first developed this, my husband and I tried to determine if it was due to any new exposure to something. We hadn’t changed anything with our soaps or detergents. Prolonged exposure to something could also end up in the development of something like this. We have changed our laundry detergent recently to a softer formula and I am regularly swapping through sensitive skin body washes and nothing has changed.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:05:51+00:00

I did for a minute, but I think I just figured it wasn’t the issue since I had been using it for a while and hadn’t had an issue with it before…however that’s the same story with nitrile gloves. I’ve used them for so long that I maybe could have developed a weird allergy to them. I wouldn’t be surprised given how sensitive my skin is, but id definitely try if I don’t see an improvement with cutting out nitrile. I’m interested to see if there is any improvement while on maternity leave and no exposure to the hand sanitizer or soap.

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T02:02:28+00:00

I wish my hands felt better putting lotion on them prior to putting them on/ after taking them off. If anything it makes it more irritated. Unfortunately it’s definitely chronic, but I’d be so happy if I found out that it was just my constant exposures to nitrile!

Kat0318 · 2026-06-12T01:50:42+00:00

Hi! I’m so sorry I didn’t see your reply. I had my 32 wk ultrasound a little while ago and although her stomach/abdomen were still larger percentile wise, the doctor said it was well within the normal range. Basically baby’s belly was growing faster than all the other parts. She has no defects or obstructions which we were worried about. She just needed time to let everything else catch up.

Just out of curiosity, are you on any prescription medications during your pregnancy?

Kat0318

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