News & Updates

A new World Bank study looks at the impact of two large-scale, government-implemented handwashing and sanitation programs in rural Tanzania. Participating wards received sanitation programmi…

In identifying the source of outbreaks and developing hygiene strategies, does our current focus on hand hygiene prevent us from taking an objective view. This review by the Rudolf Schulke Foundation,…

Increasingly we see that the rich diversity of microbes and other species present in our environment influence human health and disease, especially in cities.   In a newly published study, g…

This blog explores the social/cultural origins of why we do thishttp://blog.debmed.com/blog/affection-to-infection?utm_campaign=Blog&utm_content=11798987&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitt…

Respiratory infections are the most common illnesses in people of all ages. Good respiratory hygiene can help to reduce the spread of these diseases.IFH has produced and fact sheet for who are looking…

This is the first study to directly evaluate this issue. From this study Erika von Mutius, a highly respected researcher in this field, concludes – No. “Development of allergies and asthma…

In a new paper Dharmage, University of Melbourne review the data on this issue. They summarise their conclusions as follows:While epidemiological and other studies suggest a link between antibiotic ex…

In a new study MRSA was frequently isolated from commonly touched surfaces in buses from a US metropolitan transportation agency serving both hospital and community routes. The study showed that buses…

Todays edition of Lancet gives a review of ongoing strategy for tackling the world antibiotic resistance crisis. The review can be found at: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6…

An article in Business Standard says “Seeking quick, cheap solutions to colds and fevers  threatens to place two million Indians at risk of dying every year by 2050”.  It also qu…

Once someone in the office goes down with a cold or influenza, or the winter vomiting norovirus, the infection can spread very quickly to others.  We tend to accept this as inevitable, but by und…

A new study shows that adenovirus and norovirus can be found on surfaces in hospital wards even in the absence of an outbreak. Screening was carried out (using PCR methods) weekly for 6 months in 2 pe…

An article in the New York Times, Dec 3rd looks at the problem of antibiotic resistance in India. A study has shown that, more than 58,000 infants died last year as a result bacterial infections that …

A study of door handles and push plates in 2 hospital intensive care units showed significant correlation between the frequency of movements through the door and the degree to which it was contaminate…

A growing body of evidence indicates the presence of antibiotic resistant ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae in retail meat and food animals worldwide. During 2011 and 2012, cutting boards used in the …

After scanning four public restrooms in San Diego recently, a team of researchers found a diverse mix of microbes that persisted for months despite regular cleaning of the facilities.At the start of t…