Here are 10 articles on some of the most interesting medical research study findings and advancements from the week of Feb. 29.
1. A hospital relocated its hand sanitizer dispenser from the side of the lobby to in the middle of the lobby and saw use skyrocket 528 percent, according to a study published in the American Journal of Infection Control. Read more.
2. High-speed jet air dryers commonly found in public restrooms are germ-spreading machines, according to a new study published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology. Read more.
3. A new study published in JAMA found roughly one in 10 parents noticed medical errors that physicians missed, including late detection of a foreign object left in the patient after a procedure, recognition and treatment of urinary retention, wound contamination and an infection caused by an unused intravenous catheter. Read more.
4. Tranexamic acid has long been used to quell excessive uterine bleeding and to treat hemophilia in heart surgery patients, but a new study champions the drug's safe and effective use in joint replacement surgeries. Read more.
5. Mounting flashing lights onto hand sanitizer dispensers improved hand hygiene compliance from 11.8 percent to 20.7 percent in one hospital study. Not only that, the effect lasted the entire six-week study period. Read more.
6. A new case-control study published in The Lancet explores Zika virus and Guillain-Barré syndrome and provides strong evidence for a connection between the two conditions. Read more.
7. The addition of an antibiotic to the process of surgically draining abscesses is associated with improved patient outcomes, including mitigating the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Read more.
8. Triclocarbon, a common synthetic ingredient in soaps used for handwashing, may be helping a bacteria become more resistant to antibiotics, according to a study published in Environmental Science & Technology. Read more.
9. The proportion of Staphylococcus aureus infections in children due to methicillin-resistant strains has decreased, according to a study in Pediatrics. Read more.
10. Research from Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System suggests hypothermia commonly occurs during surgery and is associated with increased infection risk. Read more.