How you store your latex gloves is critical to their integrity. Avoid exposing packaged latex gloves to heat, too-low or too-high humidity and light. I recommend storage conditions of 66?F to 72?F, relative humidity of 40 percent to 60 percent, and keeping the gloves on a lower shelf not directly exposed to sun or ultraviolet light. But there's more to proper storage than that. Here's what you need to know.

By the time gloves reach your shelves
From manufacturing to the time you open the package, gloves go through myriad storage conditions. Master shipping cartons should be poly-lined to prevent moisture transfer. If they're not, there is not only an opportunity for contamination, but also increased probability the gloves will dry out and degrade.

Check your gloves before use. If you find gloves are tearing during donning, or you're seeing holes and small cracks during use, the cause might be improper storage during shipping. Check and document glove integrity when a shipment arrives before you approach the manufacturer about the problem. If problems with glove integrity persist, a reputable manufacturer should be willing to work with you.

Getting old
Latex is biodegradable, so the manufacture date is extremely important, as even sealed, sterile latex gloves will, over time, dry out and become brittle. Your receiving department should record the manufacture date of the gloves when a shipment arrives.

The FDA hasn't established shelf-life guidelines or mandatory expiration dates, but I recommend you don't accept dates more than a year old. AORN states in its 2004 Standards, Recommended Practices, and Guidelines that, if the manufacturer gives an expiration date, you check it "before opening the package and delivering the contents to the field. Outdated items should not be used."

Examine your first-in, first-out stock rotation to make certain the practice is working. While one-year-old gloves are probably still good to use, they can quickly become two or three years old if you or your distributor don't adhere to proper stock rotation practices.

Exploding gloves?
Strange as it sounds, powder-free latex gloves have been known to spontaneously combust. According to the FDA Public Health Advisory on the topic, in the "spring and summer of 1995, the spontaneous combustion of powder-free latex patient examination gloves caused four fires in different states." While an investigation by the FDA and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms determined that the fires occurred in warehouses with large quantities of powder-free latex gloves, the FDA was concerned enough to issue the advisory and these recommendations:

• Avoid a large inventory of powder-free latex gloves.
• Remove shrink-wrap from pallets of stacked cartons.
• Break the stacked cartons on each pallet apart and restack or reconfigure cartons to facilitate cooling ventilation.
• Periodically check powder-free latex gloves for characteristics suggesting deterioration, such as brittleness, tackiness or an acrid chemical odor.
• Rotate your powder-free latex glove stock using first-in, first-out practices.

Susceptible to UV light
Latex is particularly prone to deterioration if exposed to ultraviolet light and ozone. Even the weak UV from flourescent lights will degrade latex. When exposed to UV radiation, oxygen reacts to form ozone, causing minute cracks in gloves. Plastic or cellophane packages allow UV light in to the gloves and will produce discoloration.

Ozone attacks latex chemical bonds to rapidly deteriorate even packaged latex gloves. Ozone sources include electric motors, furnaces, air conditioners and fans. Also included are high-energy sources such as fluorescent light transformers, arcing equipment, electrocautery units and sparks generators. In addition, heat accelerates ozone damage and latex degradation.

To identify ozone damage, look for white lines, holes or tears at stress points (cuff folds and creases). If an aged glove has normal color, stretches without surface cracks, and can be pulled onto a hand without breaking, ripping or tearing, then it should protect as a fresh glove would.

Latex gloves can also easily be damaged if stored close to a source of high voltage electricity, according to the Surgical Materials Testing Laboratory. The SMTL recommends storing gloves away from fluorescent lights and outlets. Note that it's not electricity that causes glove breakdown, but the ozone that electricity emits.

Finally, as chemical solvents are known to degrade latex gloves when worn, it might be best as a precautionary measure to store chemicals in an area separate from where you store gloves.

Before you don
When pulling gloves out of storage, check them for characteristics suggesting deterioration, such as brittleness, tackiness or an acrid chemical odor. Discard the gloves if you note deterioration or any other abnormalities.