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D. SCHAFFNER and R. Montville. Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, Cook College, 65 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901

The importance of research on the efficacy of handwashing and glove use is increasingly important as many states consider “no bare-hand contact” regulations. Some data on handwashing and glove use can be found in the medical literature. Very few published studies have evaluated handwashing or glove use in a foodservice setting. The focus of medical handwashing research has recently expanded beyond the evaluation of different antimicrobial soaps. Topics such as wearing rings or artificial nails, bacterial flora of in-use soap, and efficacy of automated handwash machines have been explored. One of the most important factors in the handwashing process is hand drying; some research has shown that the use of paper towels is preferable to hot-air hand driers. A recent study found residual moisture after washing to be the most important factor in cross-contamination and paper towels the most effective way to reduce residual moisture. Research studying the permeability of gloves to bacteria and viruses have become available, although almost entirely from medical literature. These studies show from 1% to 65% virus permeability depending on type of glove, stress applied, and virus. In a study on bacterial permeability, gloves were collected from healthcare workers after use and cultured. Eighty six of 135 gloves collected had gram negatives rods on the outer glove surface, and in 11 of these 86 cases, the same gram negative species was found on the healthcare worker’s hands. In an article that focused on glove use in foodservice, the authors simulated a work environment by having subjects handle contaminated ground beef. With hourly glove changes, the microbial count on ungloved hands washed hourly was lower (3.5 log CFU) than that of gloved hands (with no handwashing) at the end of a three-hour period (6.1 log CFU).