Hand Sanitizers

In news:

• Masks and hand sanitizers have been declared as essential commodities due to their shortage in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.

About Hand sanitizer

• Hand sanitizer or hand rub is a liquid or gel generally used to decrease infectious agents on the hands.
• Formulations of the alcohol-based type are sometimes preferable to hand washing with soap and water in the healthcare setting.
• It is generally more effective at killing microorganisms and better tolerated than soap and water.
• Outside the health care setting, evidence to support the use of hand sanitizer over hand washing is poor.
• "According to the CDC, hand sanitizers are not as effective as soap and water. They don't eliminate all germs or work as well when hands become heavily soiled from activities like eating, physical activity, or camping."
• Hand washing should still be carried out if contamination can be seen or following the use of the toilet.
• The general use of non-alcohol based versions has no recommendations.
• Outside the health care setting, evidence to support the use of hand sanitizer over hand washing is poor.
• They are available as liquids, gels, and foams.
• Alcohol-based versions typically contain some combination of isopropyl alcohol, ethanol (ethyl alcohol), or n-propanol.
• Versions that contain 60 to 95% alcohol are most effective.
• Alcohol-based hand sanitizer works against a variety of microorganisms but not spores. It is also not effective against norovirus, as norovirus has no envelope to disrupt.
• The alcohol-based version is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, the safest and most effective medicines needed in a health system.

PRELIMS QUESTION:

Q. With reference to hand sanitizers, which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are effective against all types of viruses

2. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a. 1 only

b. 2 only

c. Both 1 and 2

d. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to Prelims question