Rarely known, This is How to Test The Effectiveness of Handsanitizer
Hand hygiene has become a major concern and is a crucial aspect of maintaining health and preventing disease transmission. In everyday activities, there are numerous products on the market designed to help maintain hand cleanliness, one of which is hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer, especially those based on alcohol, has become a popular choice due to its rapid and effective ability to kill bacteria and viruses on the hands when soap and water are not available.
Hand sanitizers are specifically formulated to kill or reduce microorganisms, such as bacteria and viruses, on the hands. These products generally contain alcohols like ethanol or isopropanol, which act as the primary antibacterial agents, or other active ingredients such as benzalkonium chloride. Alcohol in hand sanitizers works by disrupting the cell membrane of microorganisms, thereby inhibiting or stopping their growth. Additionally, non-alcohol-based hand sanitizers containing ingredients like benzalkonium chloride are also commonly used, particularly in medical or food industry settings.
How to Test The Effectiveness of Hand Sanitizer?
With the increase in the number of manufacturers and the proliferation of hand sanitizer products on the market, it is crucial to conduct effectiveness testing so that consumers can choose products that are truly effective in killing bacteria and viruses. Given the wide range of available options, consumers must be assured that the products they use have consistent quality and effectiveness. Therefore, it is important to perform efficacy testing on hand sanitizers to ensure that the purchased products not only meet the claims made by manufacturers but also adhere to health standards, are effective, and ensure consumer safety.
Disk Diffusion Test or Kirby-Bauer Test
Effectiveness testing helps identify products that truly offer protection and avoid those that may be less effective or even risky to health. Thus, rigorous testing is key to maintaining consumer trust and ensuring that hand sanitizers available on the market provide optimal benefits in disease prevention. Effectiveness testing of hand sanitizers involves various methods to assess their ability to tackle bacteria. One common method is disk diffusion testing, also known as the Kirby-Bauer test, which involves bacterial inoculation. In the disk diffusion method, a disk previously soaked in hand sanitizer is placed on an agar plate inoculated with bacteria. Observations and measurements are made of the diameter of the inhibition zone surrounding the disk. A larger inhibition zone diameter indicates that the hand sanitizer is more effective in inhibiting bacterial growth compared to one with a smaller inhibition zone.
Microbial Reduction Test
Another method used is the microbial reduction test, which measures the number of bacteria remaining after exposure to hand sanitizer under laboratory conditions. In this test, a bacterial solution is mixed with hand sanitizer, and after a certain period, the number of surviving bacteria is counted to assess the product’s effectiveness.
Bactericidal and Bacteriostatic Tests
Additionally, bactericidal and bacteriostatic tests can be performed to evaluate the effectiveness of hand sanitizers against bacteria. Bactericidal tests aim to determine if the hand sanitizer can kill bacteria directly. In this test, bacteria exposed to the hand sanitizer are cultured on agar media to check for bacterial colony growth. If the hand sanitizer is effective as a bactericide, no bacterial colonies will grow on the media. Meanwhile, bacteriostatic tests are used to assess whether the hand sanitizer can inhibit bacterial growth without killing them. In this test, bacteria exposed to the hand sanitizer are examined to see if their growth is inhibited but not destroyed by measuring turbidity or the number of colonies formed after exposure. Through these tests, we can determine the extent to which the hand sanitizer can kill or inhibit bacterial growth. Some products may only be bacteriostatic, meaning they only stop bacterial growth without killing them.
Virus Titer Reduction Tests
To measure the effectiveness of hand sanitizer against viruses, virus titer reduction tests can be conducted, where the virus exposed to the hand sanitizer is tested to see how much active virus remains. In this procedure, the virus is mixed with hand sanitizer under controlled conditions, and the sample is tested on cell cultures to determine the residual virus activity. Another method is the log reduction test, which measures the reduction in the number of viruses in logarithmic form. The virus is applied to a surface coated with hand sanitizer, and after a certain period, the remaining virus count is measured. Logarithmic reduction indicates how effectively the hand sanitizer reduces the virus count. Additionally, penetration and effectiveness tests can be conducted to assess the hand sanitizer’s ability to penetrate biofilms or protective layers surrounding the virus.
Overall, testing the effectiveness of hand sanitizers is an essential step to ensure that the products used can provide maximum protection against bacteria and viruses. However, besides understanding the effectiveness of the active ingredients in hand sanitizers, it is also important to recognize that the effectiveness of hand sanitizers is influenced by several other factors, such as the alcohol concentration in the product, contact time with the skin surface, and proper usage techniques. An alcohol concentration that is too low may not be effective in killing microorganisms, while improper application techniques can reduce its ability to kill bacteria or viruses. Additionally, hand sanitizers used on very dirty or oily skin may not function optimally. Therefore, it is crucial to follow proper usage instructions and understand that hand sanitizer is one component of a broader hygiene strategy.
Testing the effectiveness of hand sanitizers requires a reliable and competent laboratory. IML Testing and Research can test a variety of products that you have in order to be able to obtain Edar licenses; one of them is Handsinitizer products.
Let’s promptly consult the testing with our team of experts. Get an exclusive, free consultation with us!
REFERENCE
Jain, V. M., Karibasappa, G. N., Dodamani, A. S., Prashanth, V. K., & Mali, G. V. (2016). Comparative assessment of antimicrobial efficacy of different hand sanitizers: An: in vitro: study. Dental research journal, 13(5), 424-431.
Kampf, G. (2018). Efficacy of ethanol against viruses in hand disinfection. Journal of Hospital Infection, 98(4), 331-338.
Liu, P., Yuen, Y., Hsiao, H. M., Jaykus, L. A., & Moe, C. (2010). Effectiveness of liquid soap and hand sanitizer against Norwalk virus on contaminated hands. Applied and environmental microbiology, 76(2), 394-399.
