Infectious Bacteria and Virus in Office Surfaces Spread to Entire Building in just Two Hours: Study

Infections and bacteria in the workplace can affect half of the employees within two hours, warns a study.

Maintaining hand hygiene is essential to ward off the risk of acquiring infections and contagious diseases after coming in contact with contaminated surfaces. A door knob, computer mouse or lift buttons in hospitals, offices and public places harbor different kinds of viruses and micro-organisms and affect a considerable amount of people every year. A new research presented at the infectious disease meeting of the American Society of Microbiology examined virus spread in office buildings after smearing bacterial traces of harmless norovirus on door knobs, light switches, water taps and lift buttons with the help of virus tracers.

The experts found almost 60 percent of working staff contracted the virus in just two to four hours. The authors also noted that the coffee room and pantry were the worst infected areas in offices. If a person sick with flu and fever coughs in one room, the bacteria can transfer to others sitting in different rooms a day later.

"The results shown that viral contamination of fomites in facilities occurs quickly, and that a simple intervention can greatly help to reduce exposure to viruses," said Charles Gerba, study author and researcher at the University of Arizona, reports the Live Science News.

Following the trial, the researchers gave employees and house-keeping staff anti-bacterial wipes having quaternary ammonium compounds of QUAT after they touched bacteria infested surfaces. The use of disinfectants controlled bacterial transfer by 80 to 99 percent. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved 60 different hand-hygiene products made of QUAT to protect against Norovirus and other flu viruses. All products labels having a long chemical name beginning with 'alkyl' or ending with 'chloride' are QUAT-based.

"Most people think it's coughing and sneezing that spreads germs, but the number of objects you touch is incredible, especially in this push-button generation. We push more buttons than any other generation in history. The key message is to stay at home when you're sick," said Gerba, reports the Daily Mail.

The research was also presented at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) in Washington D.C.