Do those instant hand sanitizers really work?
The answer is a resounding yes! Few things are as certain as this in medicine. There is no doubt that washing your hands can prevent disease.
The problem is getting people to do it. A study in the Annals of Internal Medicine looked at the rate of hand washing among physicians and found that doctors washed their hands only 57 percent of the time they should have. This is higher than many studies that have shown compliance rates lower than 50 percent. In this study, the adherence to hand hygiene rates varied by specialty with internal medicine doctors washing the most, and anesthesiologists the least. Medical students did better than their professors, and female physicians did better than their male counterparts. The presence of a hand-rub solution increased the compliance with hand washing.
For this reason, those alcohol-based hand-rub solutions are all over hospitals. The food news is that they work well too. The CDC in their Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings state that “alcohol-based products are more effective for standard handwashing or hand antisepsis by health care workers than soap or antimicrobial soap.” But these hand rubs are not appropriate for use when hands are visibly soiled or after going to the bathroom.
As for the omnipresence of antibacterial soap, it is not necessary. The most important thing is to rub your hands vigorously together while washing and continue for ten to fifteen seconds. The regular soap and the scrubbing action together will help wash away the germs.
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"Does washing your hands really prevent disease?" was posted on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 11:23 pm.