The purpose of research was to check whether hand drying method affects hands hygiene after washing. There are many ways of drying hands, e.g. drying with endless towel, drying with a warm air dryer, drying with fast-exhaust air dryer and drying with disposable paper towels. Experimental work was carried out with volunteers who washed their hands and dried them with disposable paper towels or with the fast-exhaust air dryer according to the prescribed procedure. The hands were sampled before washing and after washing and drying hands. After that, the total number of aerobic mesophilic bacteria was determined and with their average number we evaluated the influence of hand drying method on its hygiene. It has been found that the use of the fast-exhaust air dryer gave comparable results to that of paper towels. The hygienic condition of the fast-exhaust air dryer and paper towels was determined as the number of aerobic mesophilic bacteria in the dryer air flow and on unused paper towels. The air of the dryer and paper towels were in good hygiene condition what is a prerequisite that hand drying may be appropriate. Awareness that hand drying is an important step in washing hands and a factor in preventing the spread of microorganisms.
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