Viral hot spots

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Warning over cold virus hotspots

TV remote controls, bathroom taps and refrigerator doors are hotspots

for the common cold virus, experts have warned.

Researchers at the University of Virginia swabbed these common

household surfaces in 30 homes and found traces of rhinovirus 42% of

the time.

While coughs and sneezes do spread the disease, everyday objects in the

home are another important source and should be cleaner regularly, they

say.

Each week in winter, a fifth of the UK population suffers from a cold.

As the virus can survive on household surfaces for up to two days, a

single family member or visitor can spread the virus to other members

through touching such things as door handles and taps, the researchers

told a US infectious diseases conference.

The cold virus is a hardy one because it survives on surfaces for so

long and can then be passed on

Professor Oxford

Virologist, UK Hygiene Council

Infectious rhinovirus was detected on almost a quarter of subjects'

fingertips one hour after touching household surfaces contaminated with

the virus.

And genetic material from the virus was still transferred to the finger

tips of more than half of the 30 people studied 48 hours after the

surfaces were contaminated.

Lead researcher Dr Birgit Winther said the public needed to be aware of

this route of transmission.

" Some people still spray the air with disinfectants, but rhinovirus

doesn't fly through the air. I think that the message from this

research is that we need to focus more wisely on cleaning commonly

touched surfaces in the home. "

Professor Oxford, virologist at St Bartholemew's and the Royal

London Hospital and chair of the UK Hygiene Council, said: " The cold

virus is a hardy one because it survives on surfaces for so long and

can then be passed on, putting the whole family at risk of infection.

Home hygiene is key in the fight against colds.

" Recent government recommendations mean that doctors can no longer

prescribe antibiotics to alleviate colds - so it's vital that families

target these key surfaces in the home to protect themselves from colds

this winter. "