The team set out to identify and quantify the respiratory viruses on frequently-touched surfaces in airports. They found evidence of viruses on 10 per cent of the surfaces tested and most commonly on the plastic trays that are circulated along the passenger queue at the hand luggage X-ray checkpoint. 
 
 The study was carried out by a team of experts from the University of Nottingham and the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare who swabbed a variety of surfaces at Helsinki-Vantaa airport in Finland during the winter of 2016. 
 
 The plastic trays used at airport security checkpoints have been found to harbour the highest levels of viruses at airports, in a new scientific investigation by pandemic experts. 
 
 Click here for full story 
 
 The investigation, published in BMC Infectious Diseases, concludes that hand washing and careful coughing hygiene are crucial to the control of contagious infections in public areas with high volumes of people passing through. 
 
 The study was part of a larger EU-funded research project called PANDHUB which explored the role of airports and other traffic hubs in the spread of serious infections. The findings add weight to previous studies showing that microbes are commonly found on surfaces in public transport vehicles and will strengthen public health advice in preparation for future flu pandemics. 
 
 At Helsinki-Vantaa airport, the highest concentration of viruses was detected on the security check plastic trays with further viruses detected on shop payment terminals, staircase rails, passport checking counters, children’s play areas and in the air. 
 
 The most common virus found in the survey was rhinovirus, which causes the common cold but the swabs also picked up the influenza A virus. Interestingly, no respiratory viruses were found on toilet surfaces. 
 
 Professor of Health Protection, Jonathan Van Tam, from the University’s School of Medicine, said: “This study supports the case for improved public awareness of how viral infections spread. People can help to minimise contagion by hygienic hand washing and coughing into a hankerchief, tissue or sleeve at all times but especially in public places. These simple precautions can help prevent pandemics and are most important in crowded areas like airports that have a high volume of people travelling to and from many different parts of the world.” 
 
 Virology expert Niina Ikonen from the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare said: “The presence of microbes in the environment of an airport has not been investigated previously. The new findings support preparedness planning for controlling the spread of serious infectious diseases in airports. The results also provide new ideas for technical improvements in airport design and refurbishment.” 
 
 The airport study was carried out during and after peak passenger density at the airport by a method which detects genetic material from viruses on surfaces and in the air. The results provided by this method do not prove that the viruses found on surfaces and air are alive and cause disease, but previous experimental research has proven that many microbes survive on various surface materials up to several days. 
 
 — Ends — 
 
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 Impact: The Nottingham Campaign, its biggest-ever fundraising campaign, is delivering the University’s vision to change lives, tackle global issues and shape the future. More news… ||||| (CNN) — What's the most germ-filled spot in an airport? The bathrooms? Those crowded waiting areas? The passport checking counter? 
 
 Surprisingly, none of the above. 
 
 A new study from a team of experts from the UK's University of Nottingham and the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare, published in the BMC Infectious Diseases journal, has revealed those airport security plastic trays are the biggest culprit for spreading germs in airports. 
 
 So next time you're dumping your phone, passport and laptop into the tray -- it might be worth having the hand sanitizer handy. 
 
 Revealing study 
 
 The team monitored germ levels on a variety of surfaces at Helsinki-Vantaa airport in Finland during the winter of 2016. 
 
 Germaphobes who travel will be horrified to find out they found evidence of viruses on 10% of all the surfaces they tested. Other germ hotspots were shop payment terminals, staircase rails, passport checking counters, children's play areas and -- unavoidably -- in the air. 
 
 There was evidence of rhinovirus -- the cause of the common cold -- plus some signs of influenza. 
 
 Surprisingly, their swabs didn't detect respiratory viruses on the toilet surfaces. 
 
 "This study supports the case for improved public awareness of how viral infections spread," said Professor of Health Protection, Jonathan Van Tram, from the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham, in a statement. 
 
 "People can help to minimize contagion by hygienic hand washing and coughing into a handkerchief, tissue or sleeve at all times but especially in public places." 
 
 Next time you're dumping your stuff in the security trays, best have that hand sanitzer nearby. Alex Wong/Getty Images North America/Getty Images 
 
 His team-partner, virology expert Niina Ikonen from the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare, added: "The results also provide new ideas for technical improvements in airport design and refurbishment." 
 
 At the end of the study, the team suggest that airports could provide "hand sanitization opportunities where intense, repeat touching of surfaces takes place such as immediately before and after security screening." 
 
 Related content 1 in 50 people finds love on an airplane, study claims 
 
 It's also suggested that the trays -- and other frequently touched surfaces -- could be cleaned more regularly. 
 
 The study pointed out that handling the plastic security trays is almost inevitable for travelers -- unlike using airport store payment points, for example. 
 
 On board 
 
 Even if you avoid airport germs, previous studies have shown airplanes are equally as dirty. 
 
 2015 study from Travelmath reported that the tray table was the number one offender, with overhead air vents also among the most germ-filled surfaces. 
 
 Of course, interacting with these surfaces, whether before you fly or on board, is no guarantee of picking up a virus. ||||| LONDON — Airport security is there to protect you, but it may also give you the sniffles — or worse. 
 
 To all the places and surfaces we’ve been warned are teeming with germs or bacteria — your pets, the subway seat, airplane cabins, the A.T.M. — add the airport security tray. 
 
 The plastic trays — used at airport checkpoints around the globe and touched by millions of passengers as they drop shoes, laptops, luggage and other items into them to clear X-ray scanners — have been found to harbor a variety of germs, including the ones responsible for the common cold, according to researchers in Europe. 
 
 Scientists from the University of Nottingham in England and the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare swabbed frequently touched surfaces at Helsinki Airport in Finland during and after peak hours in the winter of 2016 and picked up traces of rhinovirus, the source of the common cold, and of the influenza A virus.
– You probably wash your hands after using the airport bathroom—but what about after going through the security line? You might want to start, because a new study from the UK's University of Nottingham and the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare found that those trays you put your belongings in as you go through security had more cold germs on them than airport toilets, the New York Times reports. Researchers analyzed a variety of surfaces at Finland's Helsinki-Vantaa airport during peak flu season in 2015-16 and found evidence of respiratory viruses (including the common cold, influenza, and others) on 10% of them, CNN reports. But researchers highlight the security trays as the biggest risk, with 50% of them having respiratory virus germs on them. Respiratory virus germs were also found on surfaces in the children's play area, payment terminals, stair handrails, and a desk and divider glass at the passport check area. No respiratory virus germs were found on toilets—a finding referred to as "interesting" in a press release. "People can help to minimize contagion by hygienic hand washing and coughing into a hankerchief, tissue or sleeve at all times but especially in public places," says a researcher. "These simple precautions can help prevent pandemics and are most important in crowded areas like airports that have a high volume of people travelling to and from many different parts of the world." Researchers also suggest airports install hand sanitization stations near areas of "intense, repeat touching of surfaces."