SUNDAY, Oct. 2, 2005 (HealthDay News) -- Alcohol-based hand sanitizers, found in drug and grocery stores everywhere, do a good job of preventing gastrointestinal infections from spreading within the home, according to a new study.
As reported in the current issue of Pediatrics, the five-month study involved 292 Boston-area families, each of whom had at least one child in day care and were therefore at high risk for common respiratory and gastrointestinal infections.
The families were separated into two groups: those that received hand sanitizers and those that did not.
Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston found that the half of families given hand sanitizers experienced a 59 percent reduction in what they called "secondary" gastrointestinal illnesses. Families with the gels also had about a 20 percent reduction in secondary respiratory illnesses, but this drop didn't reach statistical significance.
"We think that's probably because people were more diligent about using the sanitizer after a GI-related incident, such as using the bathroom or vomiting, than after a respiratory incident, such as nose-wiping or sneezing," Dr. Thomas J. Sandora, physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children's Hospital Boston, said in a prepared statement.
According to the researchers, the alcohol-based gels do not require water and rapidly kill most bacteria and viruses on the skin. They're often a convenient alternative for parents who are unable to use soap and water when caring for sick children.
There is also evidence that the alcohol in hand sanitizers effectively kills the rotavirus, the most common GI infection in a child-care setting, while soap and water have no effect.
More information
To learn more about how germs spread, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
