Latex: A Case Study

When I was 12 years old my family and I were somewhere in Missouri, camping for a family reunion. One day we decided to go tubing down the river in rubber tubes. About halfway through my sister started to complain about the backs of her legs being itchy. My mom told her to take a dip in the river that she probably just brushed up against something. My sister can be a bit dramatic at times. At one point we hit a really rough current and started getting sucked into this one alcove of trees. Once we all made it through we stopped on a little island to regroup, take a breath, and calm down. That is when my father noticed my sister’s legs. There were hives all over the back, that were slowly spreading to the front and her legs were starting to swell. She got in the canoe
(Lawrence D. Duffield, DDS, 2017). That is a lot of people in the healthcare field that are allergic to latex, that are being exposed. There are many different types of allergic reactions that can occur. Some might just get a small rash on their skin, once they put cream on it its fine. Others though are deathly allergic and may go into anapholoix shock, where they will need an epi pen. This is also why you really have to ask a lot of questions to your patient when they mention that they have a latex allergy. There are many things in the dental office that you wouldn’t think of that are made from latex or that are rubber. Some are: anesthetic carpules bite blocks, blood pressure cuffs, endodontic stops, gutta percha, hoses, mixing bowls, nitrous oxide masks, and even prophy cups. This is why my sister is so fearful of the dentist. Even if something such as an instrument that isn’t made of latex but comes in contact with something that is, can be deadly to