New paper on efficacy of ABHS in field conditions

Efficacy of alcohol-based hand sanitizer on hands soiled with dirt and cooking oil

Amy J. Pickering, Jennifer Davis and Alexandria B. Boehm

Journal of Water and Health Vol 9 No 3 pp 429–433 © IWA Publishing 2011 doi:10.2166/wh.2011.138

Emmet Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, School of Earth Sciences, Stanford University, Jerry Yang & Akiko Yamazaki Environment & Energy Building, 473 Via Ortega, Room 247 MC: 4020, Stanford, CA 94305, USA E-mail: amyjanel@stanford.edu
Environment and Water Studies, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, USA. Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, USA

ABSTRACT
Handwashing education and promotion are well established as effective strategies to reduce diarrhea and respiratory illness in countries around the world. However, access to reliable water supplies has been identified as an important barrier to regular handwashing in low-income countries. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer (ABHS) is an effective hand hygiene method that does not require water, but its use is not currently recommended when hands are visibly soiled. This study evaluated the efficacy of ABHS on volunteers' hands artificially contaminated with Escherichia coli in the presence of dirt (soil from Tanzania) and cooking oil. ABHS reduced levels of E. coli by a mean of 2.33 log colony forming units (CFU) per clean hand, 2.32 log CFU per dirt-covered hand, and 2.13 log CFU per oil-coated hand. No significant difference in efficacy was detected between hands that were clean versus dirty or oily. ABHS may be an appropriate hand hygiene method for hands that are moderately soiled, and an attractive option for field settings in which access to water and soap is limited.

http://www.iwaponline.com/jwh/009/0429/0090429.pdf