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If we look at the current state of environmental hygiene, what we need to ask ourselves is, Why is cleanliness still such a problem? In the past, hospitals have measured cleanliness using patient satisfaction survey responses. There are several pros and cons of this approach, though satisfaction surveys measure a patients impression of cleanliness, it does not objectively tell whether a surface is clean. This can be dangerous as a surface could look fine but be contaminated with infection-causing pathogens.

Masks and hand hygiene could cut the spread of flu-like symptoms up to 75 percent, a University of Michigan study found.

New research by scientists at the University of Southampton could lead to the design of more effective drugs to combat malaria. The research will enable scientists to learn more about the nature of the enzymes required for vitamin biosynthesis by the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium. Vitamins are essential nutrients required in small amounts, the lack of which leads to deficiencies. Many pathogenic microorganisms produce vitamins, and these biosynthetic pathways may provide suitable targets for development of new drugs.

According to data in a U.S. public health report from 2007, healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs) affect more than 2 million people in the U.S. annually and cause 100,000 deaths, while significantly raising hospitalization time and costs. Studies have shown a low level of compliance rates for medical staff's handwashing, despite their awareness that hand hygiene could dramatically reduce HAI rates.