Comments on: Give germs the boot, not our babies: unwashed hands make everyone sick

By: MRSA blog « Grassroots Science

MRSA blog « Grassroots Science — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:24:04 +0000

[...] give-germs-the-boot-not-your-baby [...]

By: Yukon Kuksokwim Bethel babies alert « Grassroots Science

Yukon Kuksokwim Bethel babies alert « Grassroots Science — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 18:42:55 +0000

[...] Yukon Kuksokwim Bethel babies alert Published 2008 February 19 Updates , sanitation , schoolchildren Tags: Bumsted, Grassroots Science, YKAlaska Once again, babies are sick, but this time in the YK Delta. Inflammation can lead to scarring of lungs; high fevers can stop children’s bone and tooth growth for a short while; other infections may take advantage of weaknesses. Give germs the boot, not our babies: unwashed hands make everyone sick (see comments and post) [...]

By: Baby care handwashing « Grassroots Science

Baby care handwashing « Grassroots Science — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 07:55:33 +0000

[...] I would think there are three four main considerations– * everyone should practice good hygiene (not excessive germ phobia) because as people we share our environment This includes keeping the living areas clean and dry. * babies usually have pretty intimate contact with others (diapers, kissing, sharing food, sharing toys, mouthing everything) so others need to be aware of how they transmit germs to babies (don’t share chewed food or teething toys, for example) * babies are developing their own immune systems. They need exposure to the normal environment, but intense exposure or exposure to contaminated environments can overwhelm. * if you live in a community with an ongoing outbreak of salmonella, listeria, RSV, pneumonia, TB, norovirus, etc. and / or difficult access to clean water, then be extra vigilant with hand hygiene. see related, Give germs the boot, not our babies: unwashed hands make everyone sick [...]

By: mpb

mpb — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 19:38:19 +0000

A little bit more info in today’s news. If the household doesn’t have enough clean water for washing hands, then use hand sanitizer on the care giver’s hands (never on the baby) and keep the sanitizer gels away from where children can open them unsupervised.

“Some of these babies were so severely ill, and because this is a pretty rare thing, doctors don’t know if all the babies will fully recover or will have some long-term (effects),” Funk said.

POSSIBLY A COMMON VIRUS

No other infants were known to have the contagious illness, although a 1-year-old was also diagnosed with it. That older baby, Funk said, is the only child whose sickness was confirmed by an Outside lab as a particular strain of enterovirus.

Funk was nevertheless confident, she said, that the illness seen in the infants was the same enterovirus, although results of tests on specimens from the babies were yet to be returned to the state.

Non-polio enterovirus, as the illness is known, usually shows symptoms of fever and breathing difficulties resembling the flu. Enteroviruses, found in the mucus and stool of an infected person, are the second most frequent infectious virus after the common cold, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/rural/story/9322235p-9237366c.html