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The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne2006; 47(7); 671-676;

Pilot study to evaluate 3 hygiene protocols on the reduction of bacterial load on the hands of veterinary staff performing routine equine physical examinations.

Abstract: Reduction factors (RFs) for bacterial counts on examiners' hands were compared when performing a standardized equine physical examination, followed by the use of one of 3 hand-hygiene protocols (washing with soap, ethanol gel application, and chlorohexidine-ethanol application). The mean RFs were 1.29 log10 and 1.44 log10 at 2 study sites for the alcohol-gel (62% ethyl alcohol active ingredient) protocols and 1.47 log10 and 1.94 log10 at 2 study sites for the chlorhexidine-alcohol (61% ethyl alcohol plus 1% chlorhexidine active ingredients) protocols, respectively. The RFs were significantly different (P < 0.0001) between the hand-washing group and the other 2 treatment groups (the alcohol-gel and the chlorhexidine-alcohol lotion). The use of alcohol-based gels or chlorhexidine-alcohol hand hygiene protocols must still be proven effective in equine practice settings, but in this study, these protocols were equivalent or superior to hand washing for reduction in bacterial load on the hands of people after they perform routine physical examinations. Le nombre de bactéries sur les mains d’examinateurs a été mesuré lors d’un examen physique standardisé chez des chevaux et comparé à celui obtenu en appliquant l’un des 3 protocoles d’hygiène des mains (lavage au savon, application d’un gel d’éthanol et application de chlorhexidine-éthanol) afin de mesurer les facteurs de réduction (FR) du nombre de bactéries. Les FR moyens étaient de 1,29 log et 1,44 log sur les 2 sites choisis pour les protocoles au gel d’alcool (62 % d’alcool éthylique comme ingrédient actif) et 1,47 log et 1,94 log sur les 2 sites pour les protocoles au chlorhexidine-alcool (61 % d’alcool éthylique plus 1 % de chlorhexidine comme ingrédients actifs). Les FR étaient significativement différents ( < 0,0001) entre le groupe de lavage des mains et les 2 autres groupes (gel d’alcool et lotion de chlorhexidine-alcool). L’efficacité des gels à base d’alcool ou de chlorhexidine-alcool dans les protocoles d’hygiène des mains en pratique équine n’est pas clairement établi, mais dans ce cas-ci, ces protocoles étaient équivalents ou supérieurs au lavage des mains pour la réduction de la charge bactérienne après des examens physiques de routine. ()
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Publication Date: 2006-08-11 PubMed ID: 16898109PubMed Central: PMC1482439
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research article discusses a pilot study investigating the effectiveness of three hand hygiene protocols in reducing bacterial load on the hands of veterinary staff conducting routine physical examinations on horses.

Study Objective and Methodology

The study aimed to examine the effect of three different hand hygiene protocols on the number of bacteria present on examiners’ hands after a routine equine physical examination. The following hygiene protocols were compared:

  • Hand washing with soap
  • Application of ethanol gel
  • Application of chlorohexidine-ethanol

The reduction of bacteria was evaluated by comparing reduction factors (RFs), measured as a logarithmic decrease in bacterial counts on the hands before and after performing the equine physical examination and adhering to one of the hygiene protocols.

Main Findings

The research found that hand hygiene protocols involving the application of alcohol-based gels (mean RFs of 1.29 and 1.44 log10 at two sites) and chlorhexidine-alcohol lotions (mean RFs of 1.47 and 1.94 log10 at two sites) were as effective, if not more so, than hand washing with soap for reduction of bacterial load on examiners’ hands.

The differences in RFs between the hand-washing group and the two other groups were noticeably significant with a p-value of less than 0.0001, suggesting that this result is not due to mere chance.

Implications and Conclusions

Despite the promising findings, researchers point out that the effectiveness of alcohol-based gel or chlorhexidine-alcohol protocols in equine practice settings still needs to be thoroughly confirmed. Nonetheless, this pilot study suggests that these protocols could be equivalent to or even more effective than traditional hand washing with soap in reducing bacterial contamination, which holds potential implications for hygiene practices in veterinary medicine, especially in equine healthcare settings.

Cite This Article

APA
Traub-Dargatz JL, Weese JS, Rousseau JD, Dunowska M, Morley PS, Dargatz DA. (2006). Pilot study to evaluate 3 hygiene protocols on the reduction of bacterial load on the hands of veterinary staff performing routine equine physical examinations. Can Vet J, 47(7), 671-676.

Publication

The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne
ISSN: 0008-5286
NlmUniqueID: 0004653
Country: Canada
Language: English
Volume: 47
Issue: 7
Pages: 671-676

Researcher Affiliations

Traub-Dargatz, Josie L
  • Department of Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, 300 W. Drake Avenue, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, USA. jtraub1@lamar.colostate.edu
Weese, J Scott
    Rousseau, Joyce D
      Dunowska, Magdalena
        Morley, Paul S
          Dargatz, David A

            MeSH Terms

            • Animals
            • Chlorhexidine / pharmacology
            • Colony Count, Microbial / veterinary
            • Disinfectants / pharmacology
            • Disinfection / methods
            • Disinfection / standards
            • Ethanol / analogs & derivatives
            • Ethanol / pharmacology
            • Hand Disinfection / methods
            • Hand Disinfection / standards
            • Horses / microbiology
            • Humans
            • Hygiene
            • Physical Examination / veterinary
            • Pilot Projects
            • Random Allocation
            • Soaps / pharmacology
            • Veterinary Medicine / methods
            • Veterinary Medicine / standards

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            Citations

            This article has been cited 4 times.
            1. Verkola M, Järvelä T, Järvinen A, Jokelainen P, Virtala AM, Kinnunen PM, Heikinheimo A. Infection prevention and control practices of ambulatory veterinarians: A questionnaire study in Finland. Vet Med Sci 2021 Jul;7(4):1059-1070.
              doi: 10.1002/vms3.464pubmed: 33645926google scholar: lookup
            2. Rocktäschel T, Renner-Martin K, Cuny C, Brehm W, Truyen U, Speck S. Surgical hand preparation in an equine hospital: Comparison of general practice with a standardised protocol and characterisation of the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus recovered. PLoS One 2020;15(12):e0242961.
              doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0242961pubmed: 33351819google scholar: lookup
            3. Pickering AJ, Boehm AB, Mwanjali M, Davis J. Efficacy of waterless hand hygiene compared with handwashing with soap: a field study in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2010 Feb;82(2):270-8.
              doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2010.09-0220pubmed: 20134005google scholar: lookup
            4. Sebola DC, Oguttu JW, Malahlela MN, Kock MM, Qekwana DN. Occurrence and characterization of ESKAPE organisms on the hands of veterinary students before patient contact at a veterinary academic hospital, South Africa. BMC Vet Res 2024 Oct 17;20(1):475.
              doi: 10.1186/s12917-024-04322-2pubmed: 39420336google scholar: lookup
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