In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that opioid overdose deaths (including fentanyl and carfentanil) comprised 46,802 (69%) of the 67,367 total drug overdose deaths. The opioid overdose epidemic affects Americans not only at home but also in the workplace. First responders may be at risk of opioid exposure during incidents such as vehicle searches and responses to overdose calls. To reduce direct exposure to opioids and other hazardous drugs, first responders rely in part on personal protective equipment (PPE) as their last line of defense. First responders seek guidance from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) regarding appropriate PPE selection for potential opioid exposure. There is limited empirical glove performance data for illicit drugs. Empirical data are needed to validate NIOSH’s current recommendations regarding gloves to help prevent exposure to illicit drugs (i.e., powder-free nitrile gloves with a minimum thickness of 5 ± 2 mil [0.127 ± 0.051 millimeters]); however, no industry standard or test method currently exists for specifically evaluating PPE performance against fentanyl and its analogs. To understand the permeation qualities of gloves when challenged against fentanyl and carfentanil solutions, the ASTM International (formerly American Society for Testing and Materials) ASTM D6978-19 standard for chemotherapy drug glove permeation was adapted to test fentanyl and carfentanil hydrochloride solution permeation through twelve disposable glove models, including five models in which the manufacturers claim fentanyl protection. No nitrile glove models showed fentanyl or carfentanil permeation rates above the chemotherapy drug threshold criterion of 0.01 µg/cm²/min (i.e., thereby meeting the performance requirement) as calculated using the ASTM D6978-19 standard within the 240-min test. Latex and vinyl glove materials exhibited fentanyl and carfentanil permeation with permeation rates above this threshold. These findings are among the first empirical data to support NIOSH’s current opioid glove recommendations and define procedures that could be used to support industry standards for evaluating opioid permeation through air-impermeable PPE materials.

2018 年，疾病控制和预防中心报告说，阿片类药物过量死亡（包括芬太尼和卡芬太尼）占 67,367 例药物过量死亡总数中的 46,802 例 (69%)。阿片类药物过量流行病不仅影响美国人在家中，而且影响工作场所。在诸如车辆搜查和对过量用药电话的响应等事件中，急救人员可能面临接触阿片类药物的风险。为了减少直接接触阿片类药物和其他危险药物，急救人员部分依赖个人防护装备 (PPE) 作为他们的最后一道防线。急救人员向美国国家职业安全与健康研究所 (NIOSH) 寻求有关为潜在的阿片类药物暴露选择适当 PPE 的指导。违禁药物的手套性能经验数据有限。需要经验数据来验证 NIOSH 目前关于有助于防止接触非法药物的手套的建议（即最小厚度为 5 ± 2 mil [0.127 ± 0.051 毫米] 的无粉丁腈手套）；然而，目前还没有专门评估 PPE 对芬太尼及其类似物性能的行业标准或测试方法。为了解芬太尼和卡芬太尼溶液挑战时手套的渗透质量，采用 ASTM International（前美国材料与试验协会）ASTM D6978-19 化疗药物手套渗透标准，测试芬太尼和卡芬太尼盐酸盐溶液通过 12 个一次性手套模型，包括制造商声称具有芬太尼保护作用的五种模型。在 240 分钟测试中使用 ASTM D6978-19 标准计算的^{2 /min（即，从而满足性能要求）。}乳胶和乙烯基手套材料表现出芬太尼和卡芬太尼渗透，渗透率高于此阈值。这些发现是支持 NIOSH 目前阿片类药物手套建议的首批经验数据之一，并定义了可用于支持评估阿片类药物通过不透气 PPE 材料渗透的行业标准的程序。