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Volunteers with clean or contaminated hands were asked to remove towels from dispensers which themselves were either clean or contaminated. Recoverable bacterial transfer rates from contaminated hands to clean dispensers ranged from 0.01% to 0.64% depending on the bacteria used. The reverse transfer (i.e., from contaminated exits to clean hands) was between 12.4% and 13.1%. The results indicate that transfer of bacteria between paper-towel dispensers and hands can take place if either one is contaminated. American Journal of Infection Control 2003; 31: 387-391.