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Kent Aftergut, MD

Arch Dermatol. 2008;144(12):1620.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

A time-honored tradition of running any medical office is the use of paper on examination tables. After each visit, whether or not bare skin has touched the examination table, a nurse will dutifully roll out fresh paper and discard the old. In our busy dermatology office, we began to question the wisdom of such a practice. In waiting rooms, patients sit on chairs with no covering. Yet when they sit on examination room tables with no direct skin contact, why must special care be taken? A review of the literature revealed no studies showing any decrease in infection rates with the use of paper.

Could paper actually be detrimental to office hygiene? We have noted occasions where paper was covering blood or other infectious material, and it is unclear whether the paper provides any real protection from transmission. We also noted that the paper does not even . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Contact Dr Aftergut at kentaftergut@yahoo.com

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