Alcohol was immediately effective product against bacteria but had limited residual activity (Docket C-3; Paulson, 1994; Coates et al., 1987; Larson, 1995; Butz et al., 1990; Ayliffe et al., 1988; Aly and Maibach, 1979; Larson et al., 1986; Paulson,1994; Ly et al.,1997).
Alcohols were not as effective against viruses such as hepatitis A (Mbithi et al., 1993). Alcohol applied to hands for as short as 15 seconds has been found to be effective in preventing transmission of Gram-negative bacteria (Larson, 1995).
Bacterial counts were found to increase after very frequent washing and with the use of alcohol sanitizers (Miller, 1994). Alcohol gel sanitizers that do not require rinsing may be ineffective on their own due to the fact that there is no mechanical action to wash away bacteria (Paulson, 1994; Miller, 1994;Docket C-8).
Thus the end result may be increased resident bacteria, including pathogenic S. aureus, on the hands. As they dry, alcohol products may pull resident bacteria from deeper skin layers, thus an increase in resident bacterial counts may be noticed (Docket C-8). Antiseptic handrubs, such as alcohol gel sanitizers, can be used only to inhibit microorganisms, without any mechanical effect on soil removal (Larson, 1995).
So, what's the big deal about germs on your desk? About $789 per employee per year. That's what employers can lose due to lost productivity, replacement, and related expenses when just one employee calls in sick. According to a Mercer Human Resource Consulting study, companies spend 15% of payroll on absenteeism.For an employee earning, $40,000 annually, this translates into $6,000 paid time away from work.
"...He added, however, that resistance based on in vitro data may be over-reported in the ophthalmology literature because that determination is based on serum susceptibility standards. In fact, results of a study evaluating the activity of a variety of antibiotics against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) showed that in vitro antibiotic resistance can be overcome in vivo with intensive therapy.
"In this study evaluating gatifloxacin, vancomycin [Vancocin, ViroPharma], levofloxacin, ciprofloxacin [Ciloxan, Alcon], and cefazolin [Apothecon], only vancomycin should have been effective for MRSA eradication, but gatifloxacin also significantly reduced the bacterial counts and was equivalent to cefazolin and vancomycin," Dr. Mah said.
Another issue to consider when evaluating in vitro susceptibility data is that those studies are performed using pure antibiotic rather than commercially available formulations. The relevance of that fact with respect to ophthalmic antibiotic preparations is that the preservative benzalkonium chloride (BAK) can increase the speed of microbial kill.
"In a rabbit model of MRSA infection, we showed the combination of gatifloxacin plus BAK hastened the speed of recovery compared with gatifloxacin alone," Dr. Mah said ..."
Middle School Student charged and arrested for using a hand-sanitizer in class. Case dismissed by prosecutors after admitting a mistake was made. Police compare to 'smoking a joint in class' or 'drinking alcohol in class'.
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) January 30, 2008 -- Charges were dropped against the Lewisville teenager that was arrested and charged with sniffing a hand--sanitizer gel.
J. Michael Price II, the attorney for the teenager, was pleased that the Denton County District Attorney's Office did the right thing. "My client and I are very happy that this matter has been resolved successfully. This has been a trying time for him and his entire family the last three months. This matter should have never been prosecuted."
The youth, a student at Killian Middle School in Lewisville, Texas, was accused in October 2007 of 'sniffing' or 'huffing' a common alcohol-based hand sanitizer, "Germ-X" after class. The hand-sanitizer was provided by the teacher for use in the classroom. "My client innocently smelled his hands a few times because he thought 'it smelled good'", Price stated. "The teacher thought he was sniffing it in a manner to try and get intoxicated. The Lewisville Police believed a crime had occurred. He was booked into custody, fingerprinted, a mug-shot taken, then released to his father."
An alcohol-free hand sanitizer means you are not placing any demand on water pumping or sewage treatment infrastructure, you are not using paper towels or powered blowers to dry your hands in a lavatory and you are not introducing alcohol-based evaporative byproducts to the atmosphere.
