Spread and prevention of some common viral infections in community facilities and domestic homes

Viruses are probably the most common cause of infectious disease acquired w ithin indoor environments and have considerable impact on human health, ran ging from severe life-threatening illnesses to relatively mild and self-lim iting or asymptomatic diseases. In particular, viruses causing gastrointest inal and respiratory diseases spread rapidly in the community and cause con siderable morbidity. Increasing numbers of people who have impaired immunit y, for whom the consequences of infection can be much more serious, are now cared for in 'out of hospital' settings. This review examines the dispersa l, persistence and control of some common viruses in the domestic home and in community facilities. There is growing evidence that person-to-person tr ansmission via the hands and contaminated fomites plays a key role in the s pread of viral infections and there is a need for wider understanding of th e potential for contaminated surfaces to act as unidentified vectors of pat hogens in the transmission cycle. Intervention studies have shown that impr oved standards of education, personal hygiene (particularly handwashing) an d targeted environmental hygiene have considerable impact in the control an d prevention of infectious organisms.