Sir,

In Cheung and Gillow's1 comprehensive review of latex allergy, they cite their own ‘brief telephone audit’ to assert that the awareness of latex allergy in ophthalmic theatres is ‘fairly low’. In my experience in three UK regions, the reverse is true. There is a heightened awareness of latex allergy among theatre staff, leading to a distorted risk assessment and an over-reactive response in the majority of cases. This can lead to unnecessary cancellations, last-minute disruption to theatres and theatre lists, and exposure of patients to the risks involved in their surgeon using unfamiliar gloves and equipment.

Log in or create a free account to read this content

Gain free access to this article, as well as selected content from this journal and more on nature.com

Access through your institution

or

Sign in or create an account
Continue with Google
Continue with ORCiD