Minerva company formulates world’s first FDA approved heroin-resistant glove to protect first responders

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Mitch Spinell contributed to this story.

MINERVA – A Minerva based company is making history by creating the formula for the first-ever FDA approved glove to protect individuals from both fentanyl and heroin.

PH&S Products, LLC, has been awarded a 510(k) medical device by the Food & Drug Administration for an examination grade glove that can protect against fentanyl, heroin, and gastric acid, per the ASTM D6978-05 standard.

The 510(k) certifications were awarded to the Minerva subsidiary of Summit Glove, Inc. for both the Get-A-Grip two-tone powder-free nitrile glove, and the Intercept Free glove, which were both evaluated for resistance to fentanyl, heroin, and gastric acid by the Akron Rubber Development Laboratories (ARDL).

ARDL testing showed that fentanyl, heroin, and gastric acid did not permeate the gloves up to 240 minutes of exposure.

“To say that this is a good glove…yeah, I’d say it’s an exceptional glove because we have the science background on how those gloves should work,” says PH&S spokesman Matt Fox.

“What we basically did is test to see if those drugs would actually permeate through the glove into the hand of the user,” Fox added. “They don’t actually do a real hand, but they have a way to test it to see if the glove can actually hold against those drugs.”

The FDA regulates and certifies the safety of the products to provide a barrier for the bare hand encountering opioids – such as fentanyl or heroin – alone, or via a mixture of various substances.

Fox also explained the impact the gloves could have on medical first responders and law enforcement.

“If I would take fentanyl, and I would squeeze my fingers together…and I would expose that to your skin…you might run a fever, you might start shaking, or you might die. That’s how powerful that drug is. When a first responder is out on a call and they’re touching something, as soon as they expose that to the skin, depending on how they react to a drug…they can run into trouble.”

In the spring of 2017, an officer from the East Liverpool Police Department had a close call when responding to a traffic stop and unknowingly encountered a white powdery substance.

Officer Chris Green returned to the station that night, and a colleague informed him that he had something on his uniform. Without thinking, Green brushed it off with his bare hand. Within minutes, he hit the floor – suffering from an accidental overdose. Green came in contact with fentanyl.

He was transported to East Liverpool City Hospital and administered four doses of Narcan, an FDA-approved nasal spray version of a lifesaving medication called naloxone that can reverse the lethal effects of an opioid overdose.

EL Police Chief John Lane said Officer Green would have died if he was left alone.

Fox said they hand delivered a box to East Liverpool after the glove’s creation.

“If you have that fentanyl exposure, and you don’t have a glove like we are showing you here, you’re basically taking a gamble on your life.”

U.S. Congressman Bill Johnson of Ohio states: “This is a tremendous accomplishment for the people of Summit Glove and its subsidiary, PH&S Products, but more importantly, it will better protect first responders in Eastern Ohio and across the country from the deadly scourge of fentanyl. I was glad to help cut through red tape at the DEA to secure the materials needed to test the gloves for approval. Fentanyl is killing Americans across the country – our friends, neighbors, and in some cases family members – at unprecedented rates. Any tool that will keep law enforcement and first responders safe in this fight is very welcome.”

Stark County has more than 20 fire departments that utilize Cleveland Clinic EMS protocol which will be provided the glove.

Sandy Creek-Minerva Fire, Osnaburg Twp Fire, Quad EMS, Great Trail Fire District, Louisville Fire and many other departments in Stark County will have the glove on hand.

“In some of the situations that EMS is presented with, this glove provides us extra protection against unknown substances we may come in contact with that are on a patient we are providing care for,” said Sandy Creek-Minerva Fire Chief Aaron Stoller.