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Learning Objective 1: The learner will be able to get the information about the awareness of Latex allergies in Japanese nursing students
Learning Objective 2: The learner will be able to discuss to prevent any onset of LA in undergraduate nursing programs
We are working for the prevention of latex allergies (LA) in a Japanese undergraduate nursing program. As results of our research, we found that there are some nursing students with allergies to rubber products. We discuss the awareness of Japanese nursing students about LA based on the results of a questionnaire .
The purposes of this study are to clarify students’ awareness of LA, kinds of gloves, and their knowledge about factors causing allergic reactions.
Methods:
We performed an anonymous 24-item questionnaire with a group of 472 Japanese nursing university students. Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the Ethical Review Committee of Seinan Jo Gakuin University.
Results:
The response rate was 94.5% (N=446) and all response data had complete data available for analysis. All respondents were female students (average of age 19.3±1.4). 394 (88.3%) students did not know about LA. The numbers of students having knowledge about 1) material used in gloves, 2) causes of allergic reactions by such factors as powder and impurities, and 3) existence of non-latex gloves to prevent LA were 93/446 (20.9%), 126 (28.3%), and 118 (26.5%), respectively. The numbers of students having experience of allergic symptoms to rubber products, or having a history of atopic dermatitis were 93/446 (20.9%) and67(15.0%), respectively. 36 students (8.1%) answered that if they donned latex gloves, allergy symptoms would appear on them.
Conclusion:
Some knowledge of LA is necessary for nursing students to prevent the occurrence of allergic reactions when donning latex gloves. Our results show we need to educate about the prevention of LA and the knowledge of gloves in undergraduate nursing programs.