Characterization and creation of defects in condoms

Defects in condoms were examined, then characterized and compared with defe cts introduced using various techniques. Eighty-five percent of the condom defects examined were classified as either a hole (void in material) or a s lit (puncture). Laser drilling and puncturing with a 160 mum diameter acupu ncture needle artificially introduced similar types of defects. Microscopic examination of the created defects, before and after FDA water leak testin g, showed that this test method does not increase the size of preexisting m icroscopic defects. Examination also showed that these creation techniques generated reproducible defects within a condom type, with the size of acupu ncture needle defects varying less than laser-drilled defects. Results of w ater leak testing showed that the leakage characteristics of defects are af fected by the material type, the condom shape and size, the type of defect and the defect size, and the presence of lubricant.