Health and fitness: Hand sanitisers and viruses| Nursing World ...

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Hand sanitisers and viruses

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As public health officials struggle to contain a series of viral outbreaks this winter, many people are reaching for bottles of hand sanitiser.

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Studies show that alcohol-based sanitisers, particularly those with 60 per cent ethanol or more, can reduce microbial counts on contaminated hands and reduce the spread of some strains of the flu.

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But against norovirus, the severe gastrointestinal illness gripping many parts of the country, they may be useless.

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Some viruses, like influenza, are coated in lipids, ?envelopes? that alcohol can rupture.

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But non-enveloped viruses, like norovirus, are generally not affected.

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Bleach is effective against norovirus and can be used to decontaminate countertops and surfaces. And for people, the best strategy may be washing hands with plain old soap and water.

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In 2011, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention studied 91 long-term care facilities. During the winter of 2006-07, they identified 73 outbreaks, 29 of which were confirmed to be norovirus.

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The facilities where staff members used alcohol-based sanitisers, were six times more likely to have an outbreak of norovirus than the facilities where the staff preferred using soap and water.

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The CDC says that as a means of preventing norovirus infection, alcohol-based sanitisers can be used ?in addition? to hand washing, never as a substitute.

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Hand sanitisers can reduce the spread of some viruses, like the flu. But against norovirus they are largely ineffective; better to use soap and water.

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?Vitamin D doesn?t reduce knee pain?

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About 27 million people in the United States have osteoarthritis, an incurable condition with few effective treatments beyond pain control.

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Some observational evidence suggests that vitamin D supplements might slow progression of the disease.

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But a two-year randomized placebo-controlled study found that vitamin D did not reduce knee pain or restore cartilage.

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In an article published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers described a study of 146 men and women with painful knee arthritis who were randomly assigned to take vitamin D supplements or placebos. Vitamin D was given in quantities sufficient to raise blood levels to 36 nanograms per milliliter, a level considered sufficient for good health.

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Knee pain decreased slightly in both groups, but there were no differences in the amount of cartilage lost, bone mineral density or joint deterioration as measured by X-rays and MRI scans.

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The lead author, Dr. Timothy McAlindon, a Tufts professor, said taking vitamin D in higher doses or for longer periods might make a difference, but he?s not hopeful.

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?Although there were lots of promising observational data, we find no efficacy of vitamin D for knee osteoarthritis,? he said.

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?There may be reasons to take vitamin D supplements, but knee osteoarthritis is not one of them.?

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New York Times Service

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Source: http://www.nursingworldnigeria.com/2013/01/health-and-fitness-hand-sanitisers-and-viruses/

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