vinil skin allergies

[starcandy]

I breakout within 2 minutes of putting on vinil gloves my boss saw that I had a problem with the vinil gloves 4yrs ago and told  me not to go to doctor[did not want workerscomp issue] got me nitrile gloves  no more problems now a doctor told them no such thing as vinil allergy so now they will not provide with gloves I can use even though we are required to wear gloves at our group home and they are to be provided by employer   what should I do  

[starcandy]

the Caremate or Select vinyl gloves have just given me a slight but very itchy rash  the McKesson vinyl gloves make my hands fire engine red in a matter of minutes and make me itch for hours none of these gloves are powdered   I have had allergy testing before but not for skin allergies I have pollen, dust, mold allergies I out grew alot of allergies from my childhood  I can wear nitrile or latex gloves all day  and have at a previous job on a farm with no redness , itching or rash   it is just vinyl  that does this to me   it makes my legs get a rash too when I sit on vinyl car seats with shorts on so I alway have cloth seat covers on over vinyl seats in cars if I buy one with vinyl I normally get cars with leather seats or cloth because I have had that reaction to the car seats since I was a kid  My job said I had to go to dermatologist to see but they also told me it was not a workercomp issue because their doctors dermatologist told them there is no such thing as a vinyl allergy so the gloves could not be causing a reaction so it is not a work related issue according to them but the only time I have this problem is if I have to wear the vinyl gloves and the only place I have this problem is at work  I do not have Insurance as my job does not offer it anymore and I could not afford it when they did so am trying to figure out what to do        Thanks for all of your help and information

[Philip D Parks, MD, MPH, MOccH, FACOEM]

Hello,

How did your shifts go?

Do you have primary care physician?

You might consider asking for a referral to a dermatologist or allergist/immunologist (for a second opinion). The dermatologist or allergist could potentially do what is called patch testing to determine if you are allergic to certain types of rubber.

~•~ Dr. Parks

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice. The information presented in this posting is for patients’ education only. As always, I encourage you to see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

[starcandy]

what i mean by breakout  is that when I wear the vinil (not latax or nitrile  gloves) but vinil gloves I get redness with in two minutes and the more I wear them the more I get redness then raised pimple-like eruptions it goes up my arms my hands then begin to swell and the joints in my fingers get tight and hurt This is after one 8 hour day these symptoms appear the rash and itching stay for 3-4 days if I wear them only one day  I have to work this weekend 3/4-3/9 six day stretch and was told by work I have to wear their gloves so I will see after 6 days (64 hrs) how they are the last time I had to use for any length of time they swelled up and bled I was in pain for weeks so at that time they(the boss and the nurse)(4yrs ago) said that I must have allergies to the gloves so they bought me nitrile gloves and I had no more problems but now they have been told that there is no such thing as vinil allergies so I have to use the vinil gloves I should have gone to the doctor 4yrs ago but they fixed the problem and now they told me that I would have to see a dermotologist and that it would not be a work issue so work would not pay for it even though I have had no other skin problems since they had gotten me the nitrile gloves  the reason they are not going to supply me with them are 1)they cost more than vinil  2) they were told that vinil allergies do not exist   so I am wondering what my rights are and what I can do because this is very painful and  I am required to wear gloves and t6hey are required to provide gloves for their workers as we are required to use them  The brand is Mckessen , and acouple other brands  all vinil gloves    

  thanks for your time  

[Philip D Parks, MD, MPH, MOccH, FACOEM]

Hello,

Can you tell me more by what you mean by "breakout"?

Can you please tell me more about your symptoms: Do you have itchiness? Redness? Where? (on your hands, arms, etc)

What type and brand of gloves are currently being supplied by your employer?

~•~ Dr. Parks

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice. The information presented in this posting is for patients’ education only. As always, I encourage you to see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.