As COvID-19 eNTeRs ITs seCOND WAve, PHARMACIsTs ARe IN AN IDeAL POsITION TO ADvIse PATIeNTs ON ReDuCING THe POssIBILITy OF DRy skIN CONDITIONs THROuGH THe use OF eMOLLIeNTs…


A BIG HAND FOR MOISTURISERS!


W


ith COvID-19 still rife at present – and for the foreseeable future – the


issue of hand washing and hand sanitising is going to be around for quite some time.


At the outbreak of the pandemic, the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged everyone to maintain good hygiene practices, primarily because coronavirus is a respiratory infection, and is believed to spread in cough droplets.


As such, one of the key protective measures suggested was to wash hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds as many times as day as possible and when necessary.


since then, millions around the world have carried out this practice at home and in their workplace, using hand sanitiser when washing isn’t possible. Laboratory studies have shown that alcohol-based hand sanitisers made from 60 per cent ethanol and 70 per cent isopropanol are able to inactivate viruses genetically related to COvID-19.


26 - PHARMACy IN FOCus


Little wonder then that by February of this year – as fear of the oncoming pandemic - sales of hand sanitiser in the united kingdom had, according to kantar Worldpanel, soared by 255 per cent!


While hand washing is the primary means of maintaining good hygiene, however, both the excessive hand washing and overuse of hand sanitisers are now causing problems of their own, with many experiencing a range of skin barrier disorders and triggering conditions, such as allergic dermatitis and eczema.


The reasons why excessive hand washing will dry out the skin are obvious, but sanitiser also contains ingredients, which are exacerbating the dryness. One of the primary risks posed by alcohol-based sanitisers are that they can strip skin of oil and water, which can result in rough hands, if applied in excess.


Although they are now a staple of most people’s daily routine, when sanitisers first came out, there was actually little research to show what they did or didn’t do. Now, as a result


of the current pandemic, scientists are looking into the hand sanitiser market to find out exactly the effect that they have on the skin.


Concern was also recently expressed by chemical products company, kao Corporation, whose spokesperson suggested that excessive use of hand sanitiser may also INCReAse the risk of infection.


kao Corporation’s spokesperson explained that overusing alcohol- based hand sanitisers could possible remove ‘normal bacterial flor’ that coat the skin and fend off pathogens!


‘Of course, it is necessary to wash hands and use alcohol-based hand sanitisers in order to reduce transmission of the new virus,’ the spokesperson said, ‘but overdoing anything is not good. Dry and damaged skin could become a hotbed of disease bacteria and also increase the risk of viruses entering the body through cuts in the skin.’


How sanitisers work The active ingredient in hand sanitisers is either isopropyl alcohol,


or a similar form of alcohol (ethanol or n-propanol), or a combination of the two. Alcohol has long been known to kill microbes by dissolving their protective outer layer of proteins and disrupting their metabolism. Prior to the coronavirus, various studies had shown that sanitisers had an important role to play in slowing the spread of various viruses.


In 2019, for example, a study on hospital-borne infections showed that sanitisers could help to slow the spread of MRsA and other infections, mainly because they provided healthcare workers with a quick and convenient way to keep their hands hygienically clean.


In 2015, research had also shown that alcohol-based sanitisers were able to reduce the populations of salmonella and e coli.


A Japanese study of elementary schools, meanwhile, showed that intensive hand sanitiser use may have cut short-term rates of norovirus. The study showed that the sanitisers had cut absences due to illness by 26 per cent and reduced confirmed cases >


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