Assessment of aloe vera for qualitative fit testing of particulate respirators: a logistic regression approach

Fit testing procedure is required for filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) to ascertain an acceptable fit between the skin and facepiece sealing surface. The present study seeks to compare the efficacy of Aloe vera (A. vera) and commercial Bitrex(TM) as challenge agents of qualitative fit testing of particulate respirators. An herbal solution consisting of A. vera at seven different concentrations was developed. Threshold Screening Tests (TSTs) of A. vera solutions were compared to Bitrex(TM). To do so, solutions were administered randomly on a total of 62 participants. A placebo was also tested to ensure the taste response being valid. Statistical analysis was performed using R 3.2.5.0 software. There were no statistically significant differences between the A. vera (41.7, 58.3, 75, and 91.7 mg/ml) and Bitrex(TM) threshold tests. Therefore, the minimum concentration of A. vera to develop the threshold solution was considered to be 41.7 mg/ml. When commercial products are expensive and unavailable, a cost-effective technique would be to replace A. vera solution with a commercial product as a challenge agent of qualitative fit testing of respirators.