ReviewAmerican journal of infection control2020
Hand sanitizers: A review of ingredients, mechanisms of action, modes of delivery, and efficacy against coronaviruses.
Review in American journal of infection control, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 86 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
86 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 298 citations in OpenAlex.
- Alcohol-based hand sanitisers as first line of defence against SARS-CoV-2: a review of biology, chemistry and formulations.Epidemiology and infection · 2020Guideline
- Nanotechnology in COVID-19 prevention, diagnosis, and treatment: a comprehensive review.Discover nano · 2025Review
- Antimicrobial functional ingredients used in hand hygiene products: a cross-sectional survey on regional e-commerce platforms in Wuhan area of China.Asian biomedicine : research, reviews and news · 2025Article
- Chemical Inactivation ofMicroorganisms · 2025Article
- An online survey on the association between the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer and dermatitis in the Jizan Population.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2025Article
- Sociodemographic factors associated with dental students knowledge and attitudes regarding disinfection as a control measure to reduce the spread of COVID-19.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Development and Evaluation Essential Oils Nanoemulgel as Human Skin Sanitizer Using Novel Method.Turkish journal of pharmaceutical sciences · 2024Article
- Article
- Mechanisms of action of microbicides commonly used in infection prevention and control.Microbiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2024Review
- Review
- Development and Characterization of a Hand Rub Gel Produced with Artisan Alcohol (Gels (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Updates and future directions regarding hand hygiene in the healthcare setting: insights from the 3rd ICPIC alcohol-based handrub (ABHR) task force.Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2024Article
- Development of spray-dried powder hand sanitiser with prolonged effectivity.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Anti-microbial efficacy of a scientifically developed and standardized herbal-alcohol sanitizer.Archives of microbiology · 2024Article
- Determination and Quantification of Acetaldehyde, Acetone, and Methanol in Hand Sanitizers Using Headspace GC/MS: Effect of Storage Time and Temperature.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
- Article
- Burns Caused by Hand Sanitisers: The Trail of a Collateral Damage Left Behind by the Covid Pandemic.World journal of plastic surgery · 2024Article
- Assessment of quality of commercial hand sanitizers using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography.MethodsX · 2023Article
- Adult and children's use of hand sanitizer during a pandemic - an observational study.Journal of exposure science & environmental epidemiology · 2023Observational
- Factors associated with better alcohol hand rub in 2020. Results from the French national audit "Pulpe'friction".Journal of infection prevention · 2023Article
26 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe emergence of the novel virus, SARS-CoV-2, has posed unprecedented challenges to public health around the world. Currently, strategies to deal with COVID-19 are purely supportive and preventative, aimed at reducing transmission. An effective and simple method for reducing transmission of infections in public or healthcare settings is hand hygiene. Unfortunately, little is known regarding the efficacy of hand sanitizers against SARS-CoV-2.
methodsIn this review, an extensive literature search was performed to succinctly summarize the primary active ingredients and mechanisms of action of hand sanitizers, compare the effectiveness and compliance of gel and foam sanitizers, and predict whether alcohol and non-alcohol hand sanitizers would be effective against SARS-CoV-2.
resultsMost alcohol-based hand sanitizers are effective at inactivating enveloped viruses, including coronaviruses. With what is currently known in the literature, one may not confidently suggest one mode of hand sanitizing delivery over the other. When hand washing with soap and water is unavailable, a sufficient volume of sanitizer is necessary to ensure complete hand coverage, and compliance is critical for appropriate hand hygiene.
conclusionsBy extrapolating effectiveness of hand sanitizers on viruses of similar structure to SARS-CoV-2, this virus should be effectively inactivated with current hand hygiene products, though future research should attempt to determine this directly.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.