Comparing the antibacterial effectiveness of chlorhexidine and methylated spirit with povidone-iodine and methylated spirit for skin preparation in paediatric groin surgeries

Abstract

Background: Surgical site preparation is a standard part of the preoperative preparations done to reduce contamination of the surgical wound by skin-borne bacteria. This research aimed to determine the antibacterial effectiveness of two skin preparation methods (0.3% chlorhexidine and 3% cetrimide scrub, followed by 70% methylated spirit paint, and 7.5% povidone-iodine in 70% methylated spirit scrub and paint) for groin surgery in paediatric surgical patients. The study compared the antibacterial effectiveness of both preoperative skin preparation methods in paediatric groin surgery in Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

Methods: This was a prospective, parallel group, randomised trial, without any control, of children aged between one day and 15 years, who required elective groin surgery. The patients were recruited from the paediatric surgery outpatient clinic of Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex (OAUTHC). The patients were manually randomised into two arms. The patients’ groin skin at the site of the proposed surgery was swabbed with two moistened swab sticks at anaesthesia induction before skin preparation, three minutes after skin preparation, and at the end of the surgery. The samples collected were cultured. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Data were expressed as the mean and standard deviation as required. A criterion of p < 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance.

Results: A total of 70 patients were recruited for the study. The patients’ age range was two months to 15 years, with a mean of 4.66 years. There were 63 males (90%) and seven females (10%), resulting in a male-to-female ratio of 9:1. Both skin preparation methods significantly affected the bacterial colony count, as demonstrated by McNemar’s chi-square test.

Conclusion: This study’s findings indicate that both skin preparation methods have significant antibacterial effects, with no statistically significant difference in their antibacterial effectiveness.