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Face touching: a frequent habit that has implications for hand hygiene
Yen Lee Angela Kwok1, Jan Gralton1, Mary-Louise McLaws1
1School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Medicine, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
American Journal of Infection Control
|February 1, 2015
Summary
Medical students frequently touch their faces, with 44% of touches contacting mucous membranes. This behavior, particularly hand-to-mouth and hand-to-nose contact, can transmit infections, highlighting the need for improved hand hygiene.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral science
- Infectious disease transmission
- Public health
Background:
- Limited data exists on face-touching frequency as a transmission route for Staphylococcus aureus and respiratory infections.
- Face-touching is a potential self-inoculation vector.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the frequency and patterns of face-touching behavior among medical students.
- To assess the proportion of face touches involving mucosal areas.
Main Methods:
- Behavioral observation study using videotape recordings of medical students.
- Standardized scoring sheets to tally hand-to-face contacts.
- Analysis of contact frequency with mucosal and non-mucosal areas.
Main Results:
- Observed students touched their faces an average of 23 times per hour.
- 44% of face touches involved mucous membranes (mouth, nose, eyes).
- Mouth, nose, and eye contact accounted for the majority of mucous membrane touches.
Conclusions:
- Raising awareness of face-touching habits can improve hand hygiene compliance.
- Hand hygiene programs should emphasize reducing mouth and nose touching.
- Hand hygiene is crucial for preventing pathogen transmission via self-inoculation.
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