to date , no one has studied the effect of high levels of glycerin on a variety of active ingredients . we have shown that high glycerin does not inhibit and even has a synergistic effect on a cationic anti - microbial agent , acting to preserve its effectiveness over longer periods of time than similar compositions without glycerin or with low levels of glycerin . though not wishing to be bound to any particular theory , it is hypothesized that high glycerin acts as a stratum corneum hydrator , creating a reservoir of glycerin in the stratum corneum . studies have shown that high glycerin products actually deliver glycerin into the skin and increase the thickness of the entire stratum corneum ( appa , y ., et al , clinical evaluations of hand and body moisturizers that heal skin dryness , poster presentation at the 1992 american academy of dernatology , san francisco , dec . 6 - 7 , 1992 ). it is believed that other materials with similar anchoring / substantive , hygroscopic and water solubility properties should have a similar effect , acting to penetrate the stratum corneum , hydrating it and providing a reservoir of water within which a polar active ingredient can dissolve / reside and be retained to increase its effectiveness . the effect may be even more pronounced where the active ingredient is both soluble in water and in the anchoring agent employed . this is true for the combination of chg and glycerin because chg is both water and glycerin soluble . to test this hypothesis , the effect of similar polyols such as propylene glycol , butylene glycol , erythritol , xylitol , sorbitol , mannitol , and inositol , etc ., and closely related molecules such as aldoses like glyceraldehyde , erythrose , threose , xylose , ribose , arabinose , lyxose , etc ., and ketoses such as dihydroxyacetone , erythrulose , ribulose , xylulose , etc . were studied . additional anchoring agents useful in the invention can be identified in the manner described in example 1 by substituting such agent for chg therein . anchoring agents that enhance the activity of chg by 20 % are considered anchoring agents of this invention . likewise , the high anchoring agent content , for example high glycerin content , of this invention can be combined with and improved by the addition of other agents . many polymeric materials with anchoring and substantive properties may be combined with the anchoring agents described above , for example glycerin , to provide improved retention and slow release of soluble active ingredients . for example , substantive agents include octadecene - 1 / maleic anhydride copolymer , organofluorinated modified silicone resins , polyvinyl pyrrolidone , hydrogenated copolymers of styrene and butadiene , film forming copolymers , copolymers of eicosene and vinyl pyrrolidone , copolymer of hexadecane and vinyl pyrrolidone , cellulosic ethers , 2 - hydroxyethyl methacrylate homopolymer , cocodimethyl ammonium salt of hydrolyzate of wheat protein , guar hydroxy propyltrimonium chloride , hydroxypropylcellulose , lauryldimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed collagen , lauryldimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed wheat protein , polyquaternium - 24 and hyaluronic acid , soluble reticulin and soluble wheat protein , stearyldimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed collagen , acrylic / acrylate copolymers , behenoxy dimethicone , dimethicone copolyol phosphate , polydecene / polybutene copolymer , polymethacrylamidopropyl trimonium chloride , polymethylalkyl siloxane , and the like . however , where the anchoring agent composition is intended to be used where latex gloves might also be used , for example in a surgical setting , it is preferred that oil - based ingredients be kept to a minimum if possible . this is because petroleum and mineral oil based additives are known to compromise the structural integrity of latex . thus , water soluble ingredients are preferred in this type of application . anti - microbial agents useful in the invention include nisin , bis - diguanides , chlorhexidine gluconate , chlorhexidine diguaconate , chlorhexidine diacetate , chlorhexidine dihydrochloride , polyhexamethylene biguanide , benzalkonium chloride , benzethonium chloride , methylbenzethonium chloride , cetyl pyridinium chloride , triclosan , triclocarban , tribromsalani , amyltricresols , parachlorometaxylenol , phenol , iodine , nonylphenoxypoly ( ethyleneoxy ) ethanoliodine , poloxameriodine complex , undecoylium chloride iodine complex , bisquaternary ammonium compounds , polymeric quaternary ammonium compounds , alcohols , cationic peptides , organometallic antiseptics , alkyl pyridinium salts , essential oils , and their combinations and derivatives . likewise , a variety of simple alcohols may function in this regard , including but not limited to , ethanol , propanol , butanol , pentanol , 2 - methyl - 1 - butanol , hexanol , 2 - methyl - 1 - pentanol , 3 - methyl - 1 - pentanol , 2 - ethyl - 1 - butanol , 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethyl - 1 - hexanol , heptanol , octanol , isooctyl alcohol , decanol , dodecanol , tridecanol , tetradecanol and the like . additional active ingredients useful in the invention can be identified in the manner described in the example by substituting such active ingredients for chg and anti - histamines , for example , diphenylhydramine and phenyltoloxamine ; anti - inflammatory agents , for example , hydrocortisone ; analgesics , for example capsaicin ; anesthetics , for example benzocaine ; anti - perspirants ; anti - dandruffs ; astringents , for example calamine , aluminum acetate and zinc oxide ; counter irritants , for example menthol and camphor ; depigmenting or bleaching agents ; steroids ; and the like . active ingredients that have at least 20 % increased activity when combined with 40 % glycerin are included in this invention . active ingredient is defined herein as a pharmaceutically active ingredient that has increased substantive properties when combined with the anchoring agents below , meaning it penetrates into the skin , providing long lasting activity even after wash off . anchoring agent is defined herein as a hygroscopic agent that penetrates and remains in the upper layers of the skin ( in other words a substantive agent ), into which an active ingredient can be partitioned and retained with the anchoring agent against wash off . the anchoring agent provides for the slow release of an active ingredient , such as an anti - microbial . anti - microbial is defined herein as an agent that inhibits the growth of , or kills , organisms including bacteria , protozoans , viruses , prions , yeast , fungi , or other infectious agents , and has increased substantive properties when combined with the anchoring agents above , meaning it penetrates into the skin providing long lasting anti - microbial activity even after wash off . high glycerin is defined herein as greater than 30 % glycerin , preferably from about 35 to 100 % glycerin , and more preferably from about 40 to about 80 %, from about 50 to about 75 %, or at least 60 % glycerin , for example 60 % glycerin ( all percentages herein are w / w ). simple polyol is defined herein to exclude polymerized polyols , such as polyglycerol , and long chain ( more than 3 carbons ) esters of polyols such as fatty acid esters of glycerol . wash solution is defined herein as a solution that can be used before , during or after cleansing and may be hand washes , wound cleansers , body washes , mouthwashes , surgical scrubs , etc . in the form of liquids , lotions , creams , foams , gels , milks , and the like . wash solution does not include soap bars . high ( 40 %) glycerin and glycerin free formulations were tested for their effect on the germicidal effectiveness of a 4 % solution of chg per the technique described generally herein and adapted from larson ( larson , e ., et al ., effects of a protective coating foam on scrubbing and gloving , american j . of infection control 21 ( 6 ): 297 ( 1993 )). ten healthy subjects over the age of 18 but less than 70 were screened and admitted into the study . insofar as possible , subjects were of mixed sex and age . all were free of clinically evident dermatoses or injuries to the hands or forearms . during a 14 - day pretest period , subjects avoided the use of medicated soaps , lotions , detergents and shampoos , as well as skin contact with solvents , acids and bases . non - anti - microbial products were supplied to the subjects for their use throughout the pre - test period . this regimen allowed for the stabilization of the normal microbial populations of the hands . subjects participated in the study for 5 consecutive days . the first two days subjects had a baseline microbial count taken of both hands by the glove juice procedure . for the baseline determination , hands were washed using a liquid nonmedicated baseline soap control ( baby san ®, a huntington ™ product ) according to standard surgical scrub procedures . subjects clipped fingernails to 2 mm free edge , if necessary . all jewelry was removed from hands and forearms . subjects wet their hands , including two thirds ( 2 / 3 ) of the forearms , under running tap water 40 ± 2 ° c . for thirty seconds . during this rinse , fingernails were cleaned with a nail cleaner . hands were maintained higher than elbows during the wash procedure which was as follows . hands and forearms were washed with 5 ml of baseline control soap for thirty ( 30 ) seconds using water as required to develop lather . hands and forearms were rinsed thoroughly , removing all lather , for 30 seconds under running tap water at 40 ± 2 ° c . hands were not dried , but gloved wet . this was followed by the glove juice procedure . glove juice procedure -- following the prescribed wash and rinse , powder free sterile latex gloves ( fisherbrand ® powder - free , sterile , latex surgical gloves ) were donned . at the designated sampling times , 75 ml of sterile stripping suspending fluid with neutralizers were placed into the glove . the wrist was secured , and an attendant massaged the hand through the glove in a standardized manner for 60 seconds . aliquots of the glove juice were removed and serially diluted , 10 0 - 10 6 , in butterfields buffered phosphate solution . duplicate pour plates were prepared from each of these dilutions on tryptic soy agar with 0 . 070 % ( w / v ) lecithin and 0 . 5 % tween 80 . plates were incubated at 30 °± 2 ° c . for up to 72 hours . those plates providing colony counts between 25 and 250 were counted and used . if the undiluted ( 10 °) plates gave an average count of 0 , the average count was expressed as 1 . 00 . this was done for mathematical reasons because the log 10 of 0 is undefined , but the log 10 of 1 is 0 . the number of viable bacteria recovered was 75 x dilution factor x mean plate count for the duplicate plates . subjects followed standard surgical scrub techniques using a solution of 4 % chg for 3 days . on day 3 , after scrubbing the subjects applied 350 mg of either high glycerin ( hg ) cream , 700 mg glycerin free ( gf ) lotion or no cream / lotion control . microbial sampling was performed immediately after treatment or at 2 hours after treatment and the log 10 reduction recorded as per table 1 . on day 4 , no creams were used and on day 5 , creams were applied prior to scrubbing . the results were as follows : ______________________________________ test day 3 test day 4 test day 5 hg / gf after scrub no hg / gf hg / gf before scrubtreatment 0 hr 2 hr 0 hr 2 hr 0 hr 2 hr______________________________________hg 1 . 12 1 . 34 1 . 85 2 . 14 2 . 32 2 . 81 ** gf 1 . 03 1 . 46 2 . 02 2 . 28 2 . 01 2 . 17 none 1 . 23 1 . 50 1 . 63 2 . 16 1 . 93 2 . 18______________________________________ ** significantly different when compared with the reference sample using the student t test ( p = 0 . 01 ). here the high glycerin cream product significantly enhanced the effect of chg . it is noteworthy that enhancement of chg occurs with low amounts of a high glycerin containing cream , but not with high amounts of a glycerin - free lotion . the data was evaluated using several analysis of variance models and the students t test . the data shows that the high ( 40 %) glycerin cream enhanced the effect of chg activity 2 hours post scrub on test day 5 . glycerin is a known humectant that has beneficial effects on skin conditioning due to its effects on the status of water in at least the outer layers of the stratum corneum . this is probably the result of glycerin interactions with the lipid proteins in the stratum corneum , altering their water binding and / or hydrophilic properties . due to this phenomena , as glycerol increases in the skin , so does water increase to form a reservoir in which water soluble active ingredients , such as chg , can be dissolved and retained against wash off additionally , where the active ingredient is itself soluble in glycerin , the enhancement effect is further increased . these effects may explain the mode of action of glycerin enhancement of chg activity . the enhancement is best seen when the skin is first treated with a dermal anchoring agent before washing with chg . this is because a reservoir has been created into which the maximum amount of chg can diffuse . when the dermal agent is used after the chg wash , there is less chg present to diffuse into the skin with the dermal anchoring agent , most of the chg having already been rinsed off due to lack of a dermal anchoring agent . however , it is anticipated that the enhancement effect will occur whether the dermal anchoring agent is used simultaneously with , before or after the chg wash , because this is always some amount of chg retained on the skin even after rinsing . the invention has been described in an illustrative manner , and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of description rather than of limitation . obviously , many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . it is , therefore , to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described .
emulsions containing a dermal anchoring / substantive agent , such as glycerin , in high concentration enhance the activity of active ingredients , such as anti - microbial agents like chlorhexidine gluconate . kits , compositions and methods pertaining to the same are provided . the invention finds application in cleansers such as hand washes , wound cleansers , body washes , mouthwashes , surgical scrubs , etc ., and lotions , creams , foams and ointments . specifically , one embodiment of the emulsion contains greater than 30 % of an anchoring / substantive agent such as glycerin and an effective amount of chlorhexidine gluconate . additionally , the product produced by the process of combining on the skin high glycerin and an anti - microbial is described .