AVPP: Ansell Viral Penetration Program - Ansell Healthcare Europe

Why the AVPP?
As a worldwide leader in hand protection for healthcare
practitioners, Ansell is committed to taking safety a step further.
With this new AVPP programme, Ansell addresses a concern that all
healthcare professionals have in their daily practice.
Medical concerns
Globally, an estimated 170 million
people (3% of the global population)
are infected with the hepatitis C
virus (HCV). According to the latest
assessments, over 40 million people
are currently virally infected with
HIV, and 350 million suffering
from chronic HBV infection with
hepatitis B.
Insufficient regulation
In Europe, there is no regulation
regarding viral penetration through
medical gloves. The EN-455 Part I
standard (‘Requirements and testing
for freedom from holes’) merely
requires the statistical testing of
glove impermeability (AQL measurement).
This testing is carried
out through a static methodology
involving water contact.
However, glove manufacturers in
Ansell Viral Penetration
Program (AVPP)
Penetration versus
Permeation
By 2004, Ansell had already
launched the Ansell Cytostatic
Permeation Program (ACPP). This
permeation assessment protocol
has resulted in safer guidelines for
handling high-risk chemicals, such
as drugs used in chemotherapy.
With Ansell’s newly introduced
and exclusive AVPP testing pro-
Obviously, throughout their daily
practice healthcare professionals
are in contact with patients who are
potentially virus-contaminated. Of
all the viruses, hepatitis B and C,
along with AIDS, cause the greatest
concern and, as a result, healthcare
professionals want to be certain they
are using the best possible materi-
Europe apply the American standard
ASTM F 1671-97b, which uses
a standard methodology to test the
resistance of protective clothing
materials against penetration by
blood-borne pathogens and which
utilises the Phi-X174 bacteriophage
penetration as a test system. This
testing methodology has its own
limitations, as the standard itself
describes: “…this test method does
gramme, a similar ‘dynamic’
methodology is applied in order to
measure potential viral
penetration through medical gloves
and provide better protection for
healthcare professionals. The AVPP
uses the Ansell Dynamic Testing
Device (Ansell exclusivity) , which
simulates the real-life, dynamic
situations such as rubbing, stress,
exposure and the tension that med-
Penetration is defined as the
movement on a non-molecular
level of a chemical or microorganism
through a protective
glove’s porous materials, tears,
pinholes or other imperfections
or manufacturing defects.
als to prevent viral contamination.
More and more, they question glove
manufacturers about the level of
protection provided by their products
against blood-borne viruses
because viral penetration may,
potentially, occur through any glove
imperfections, such as pinholes.
not simulate all the physical stress
and pressures that might be exerted
on protective clothing materials
during use” and “The integrity of
the protective barrier may also be
compromised during use by such
effects as flexing and abrasion.”
Because of their commitment to
improving safety for the healthcare
practitioners, Ansell has decided to
develop the AVPP programme.
ical gloves endure in daily work
manipulations. The result is a far
more accurate evaluation of glove
resistance to viral penetration.
The AVPP is the result of the collaboration
between the Université
Catholique de Louvain’s department
of toxicology and special
chemistry, their virology lab and
Ansell Europe’s medical business
group.
Permeation is the process
by which a chemical moves
through a protective glove’s
material on a molecular level.