Handwashing in averting infectious diseases: Relevance to COVID-19

Author/s
Haque M.
Year
Language
English
Document Type
Article
Source Title
Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology
Publisher
Codon Publications

Description

After officially declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), drastic measures to restrict human movements to contain the COVID-19 infection are employed by most of the countries. Maintaining high personal hygiene by frequent handwashing and be vigilant of clinical signs are widely recommended to reduce the disease burden. The national and international health agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the WHO, have provided guidelines for prevention and treatment suggestions. Here, in this brief article, based on available clinical information, the author discusses why handwashing could be protective of COVID-19 infections. Although a detailed and in-depth discussion of various preventive and protective measures is beyond the scope of this article, this review will focus on the utility of frequent handwashing in minimizing the risk of spreading COVID-19 infection. © 2020 Mainul Haque.

Migration angle
Region/Country (by coverage)
Index Keywords

Article; coronavirus disease 2019; diarrhea; disease burden; disease transmission; hand washing; health care cost; health care personnel; health care system; human; infection control; Middle East respiratory syndrome; mortality; nausea; pandemic; patient safety; personal hygiene; polymerase chain reaction; practice guideline; public health; risk factor; Coronavirus infection; hand disinfection; pandemic; procedures; virus pneumonia; Coronavirus Infections; Guidelines as Topic; Hand Disinfection; Humans; Infection Control; Pandemics; Pneumonia, Viral