Scientists at the University of Virginia, long known for its virology research, tested surfaces in the homes of people with colds and reported the results Tuesday at the nation’s premier conference on infectious diseases.
For the new study, researchers started with 30 adults showing early symptoms of colds. Sixteen tested positive for rhinovirus, which causes about half of all colds. They were asked to name 10 places in their homes they had touched in the preceding 18 hours, and researchers used DNA tests to hunt for rhinovirus.
“We found that commonly touched areas like refrigerator doors and handles were positive about 40 percent of the time” for cold germs, Winther said.
In a separate study, the university’s Drs. Diane Pappas and Owen Hendley went germ-hunting on toys in the offices of five pediatricians in Fairfax, Va., three times during last year’s cold and flu season.
Tests showed fragments of cold viruses on 20 percent of all toys tested — 20 percent of those in the “sick child” waiting room, 17 percent in the “well child” waiting room, and 30 percent in a sack of toys that kids are allowed to choose from after being good for a shot.
“Mamas know this,” Hendley said. “They say, `We go to a doctor for a well-child checkup, the kids play with the toys and two days later they have a cold.’”
Doctors have long advised frequent hand-washing to avoid spreading germs. Wearing surgical masks and using hand sanitizers also can help, a novel University of Michigan study found.
About 1,000 students who live in dorms tested these measures for six weeks during the 2006-07 flu season. They were divided into three groups: those who wore masks, those who wore masks and used an alcohol free hand sanitizer, and those who did neither.
The two groups who used masks reported 10 percent to 50 percent fewer cold symptoms — cough, fever, chills — than the group who used no prevention measures.
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