Aim To identify glove usage within UK and Ireland dental hospitals as well as the use of latex- and non-latex-containing dental equipment.

Method A self-completed questionnaire was disseminated to 16 dental hospitals in the summer of 2017. The survey concerned their current use of latex and non-latex gloves and dental equipment. In addition, information was sought regarding any problems associated with non-latex and latex gloves.

Results The questionnaire response rate was 13/16 (81%), of which 100% reported the use of non-latex examination gloves. The majority were using nitrile gloves. Twelve of the 13 dental hospitals would use examination gloves for simple extractions and 11 would use sterile gloves for minor oral surgery. In ten hospitals (77%), the sterile gloves were always non-latex, and again, the majority were nitrile. Latex-containing dental equipment including orthodontic bands, prophylactic polishing cups and dental dam was still being used within some dental hospitals, but to a much lesser extent than non-latex.

Conclusion All dental hospitals were using latex-free examination gloves and were showing a move towards latex-free dental equipment. This usage is comparable to what has been seen in general dental practice and follows the trend towards latex-free dentistry.

目的确定英国和爱尔兰牙科医院内手套的使用情况以及含乳胶和不含乳胶牙科设备的使用情况。

方法2017年夏天，向16家牙科医院发放了一份自填问卷，调查内容涉及他们目前使用乳胶和非乳胶手套及牙科设备的情况。此外，还寻求有关与非乳胶和乳胶手套相关的任何问题的信息。

结果问卷回复率为13/16（81%），其中100%报告使用非乳胶检查手套。大多数人使用丁腈手套。 13 家牙科医院中有 12 家将使用检查手套进行简单的拔牙手术，11 家将使用无菌手套进行小型口腔手术。在十家医院（77%）中，无菌手套始终是非乳胶手套，而且大多数是丁腈手套。一些牙科医院仍在使用含乳胶的牙科设备，包括正畸带、预防性抛光杯和牙坝，但使用范围比非乳胶要少得多。

结论所有牙科医院都在使用无乳胶检查手套，并且正在向无乳胶牙科设备迈进。这种用法与一般牙科诊所中所见的用法相当，并且遵循无乳胶牙科的趋势。