5.3 Hand hygiene

5.3.1 Hand rubs

Alcohol Hand Rubbing vs Washing

• Standard recommendations: alcohol-based handrubs or handwashing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
• When hands are visibly dirty: handwashing with soap and water
• When hands are not visibly dirty: alcohol-based handrubs is a preferred method as it demonstrated better antiseptic efficacy. It is also easier to be used at the point of care and is minimally time-consuming, resulting in better compliance.

* Use of gloves do not constitute part of hand hygiene. Proper hand hygiene should still be performed before and after wearing gloves. It is not recommended to use alcohol-based handrubs whilst gloves are on hands. 

Ethanol vs Isopropyl Alcohol

References
Peiris JSM, Guan Y, Yuen KY (2014): Severe acute respiratory syndrome. Nature Medicine 10: S88-S97.
Gaunt ER, Hardie A, Claas ECJ, et al. (2010): Epidemiology and Clinical Presentations of the Four Human Coronaviruses 229E, HKU1, NL63, and OC43 Detected over 3 Years Using a Novel Multiplex Real-Time PCR Method. Journal of Clinical Microbiology 48: 2940.
Matoba Y, Abiko C, Ikeda T, et al. (2015): Detection of the Human Coronavirus 229E, HKU1, NL63, and OC43 between 2010 and 2013 in Yamagata, Japan. Japanese Journal of Infectious Diseases 68:138-141.