Summary
Background
The efficiency of hand drying is important in preventing pathogen spread, but knowledge
surrounding which drying methods contribute least towards contamination of the environment
and users is limited.
Aim
To compare the propensity of three common hand-drying methods (jet air, warm air dryers,
and paper towels) to contaminate the environment, users, and bystanders.
Methods
Hands were coated in lactobacilli to simulate poorly washed, contaminated hands, and
dried. The investigation comprised 120 air-sampling tests (60 tests and 60 controls),
divided into close and 1m proximity from the drying process. Separate tests used hands coated in paint to
visualize droplet dispersal.
Findings
Air bacterial counts in close proximity to hand drying were 4.5-fold higher for the
jet air dryer (70.7cfu) compared with the warm air dryer (15.7cfu) (P = 0.001), and 27-fold higher compared with use of paper towels (2.6cfu) (P < 0.001). Airborne counts were also significantly different during use of towel drying
versus warm air dryer (P = 0.001). A similar pattern was seen for bacterial counts at 1m away. Visualization experiments demonstrated that the jet air dryer caused the most
droplet dispersal.
Conclusion
Jet air and warm air dryers result in increased bacterial aerosolization when drying
hands. These results suggest that air dryers may be unsuitable for use in healthcare
settings, as they may facilitate microbial cross-contamination via airborne dissemination
to the environment or bathroom visitors.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: August 26, 2014
Accepted:
August 7,
2014
Received:
November 27,
2013
Identification
Copyright
© 2014 The Healthcare Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
