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Gloves, sanitizers equally effective if used correctly, expert says

Alcohol-based skin antiseptics are the most effective as a protection against the coronavirus, he recalled

MOSCOW, October 21. /TASS/. The effectiveness of gloves and sanitizers for individual skin protection is comparable, although gloves should be used once and with constant contact with surfaces in public places it is best to use alcohol-based antiseptics, Vladimir Chulanov, chief non-resident expert on infectious diseases of the Russian Healthcare Ministry told TASS on Wednesday.

"Measures of skin protection - both gloves and alcohol-based antiseptics - <...> are rather effective if used correctly. One can use both <...>. If used properly, [gloves and sanitizers] are completely equivalent," he said.

Gloves, according to him, are effective with single use, if skin contact is avoided with their external surface. "One shouldn’t use gloves multiple times: if the infection remains on them, they may be an additional source. So there should be disposable gloves that are used only once, and then they should be taken off properly and disposed of, without touching the surfaces which contacted other surfaces: door knobs, handles, and so on," he said.

Alcohol-based skin antiseptics are the most effective as a protection against the coronavirus. "There are a lot of antiseptics, alcohol-based preparations work particularly well because they dissolve the viral membrane. <...> One can apply skin antiseptics: when entering and exiting public places, treatment with skin antiseptics also allows to decrease the risk of infection," the expert added.

The mask and gloves regime became compulsory at capital enterprises working face-to-face in May 2020. Additionally, the employers in Moscow are obligated to ensure strict adherence to anti-epidemic measures in the workplace. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin also requested to increase control over observance of anti-epidemic measures by employees.

According to the latest statistics, about 40.8 mln people have been infected worldwide and more than 1.12 mln deaths have been reported. To date, 1,447,335 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 1,096,650 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 24,952 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.