Hand sanitizer study
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
"Alcohol-based hand gel use was associated with reduced respiratory illness transmission in the home," an observational, prospective cohort study of 208 families with children in day care found, Grace Lee, MD, Harvard Medical School, et al., report in the April issue of Pediatrics. Self-reported study results in families observed from November 2000 to May 2001 suggested a 40% decrease in relative risk of respiratory infection transmission in families where hand gel was used. A randomized controlled trial in a home setting is needed to determine the "true impact" of the products, the authors say. Targeted "educational interventions about the importance of hand hygiene and use of alcohol-based hand gels" should be considered in the future, Lee et al. conclude. A separate study in the same journal concluded hospitals should support hand gel use "with the aim of decreasing hospital-associated infection rates"...