Second study on bird flu hand sanitiser

Europe’s leading contract virology research company Retroscreen Virology is to research the effectiveness over time of the Chlorhexidine hand sanitiser, developed by Skinvisible Pharmaceuticals headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, US.

An earlier study demonstrated that the Chlorhexidine sanitiser had a greater than 99% kill of bird flu virus H5N1 at four time points (15s, 30s, 1 min and 5 min). The second study, expected to be completed within six weeks, will quantify the persistence of the Chlorhexidine hand sanitiser after hand washing.

Skinvisible aims to demonstrate that its patented delivery system, Invisicare, ensures coverage of the sanitiser on the hands for an extended period of time, while resisting both wash-off and rub-off during that time.

The active ingredient in Skinvisible’s product, Chlorhexidine, is an easily tolerated and effective antiseptic that kills or inhibits the growth of disease-causing bacteria, viruses and other micro-organisms, and is used for surgical scrub, skin wounds, germicidal hand rinse, and antibacterial dental rinse.

“It is well-known that flu viruses are spread by touch: you rub your nose, then touch the telephone. Those viruses live long enough for someone else to pick them up,” said Terry Howlett, ceo of Skinvisible. Viruses can survive on human hands for several hours and up to 48 hours on non-porous surfaces, such as a telephone, computer keyboard, doorknobs or toys. “This is what makes hand-washing so critically important,” added Howlett.