SynthesisInfection control and hospital epidemiology2012
Preoperative skin antiseptic preparations for preventing surgical site infections: a systematic review.
Synthesis in Infection control and hospital epidemiology, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 76 citations in OpenAlex.
- Preoperative skin antiseptics for preventing surgical wound infections after clean surgery.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015Pooled it
- Preoperative bathing or showering with skin antiseptics to prevent surgical site infection.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015Pooled it
- Bacterial Nanocellulose Wound Dressings with Gentamicin-Loaded Chitosan Nanoparticles for Surgical Site Infection Management.Polymers · 2026Article
- Multimodal assessment of the prevention of surgical site infections in breast surgery in a French university hospital.Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2025Observational
- Narrative Review of the Use of Hydrocolloids in Dermatology: Applications and Benefits.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Small animal patient preoperative preparation: a review of common antiseptics, comparison studies, and resistance.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2024Review
- Is there a role for antibiotics in the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis?The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology · 2022Review
- Prevention, Diagnosis and Management of Post-Surgical Mediastinitis in Adults Consensus Guidelines of the Spanish Society of Cardiovascular Infections (Journal of clinical medicine · 2021Review
- Preventing complications in dermatologic surgery: Presurgical concerns.Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · 2021Review
- Are three antiseptic paints needed for safe preparation of the surgical field? A prospective cohort study with 239 patients.Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2020Article
- Article
- Evaluation of 4 Presurgical Skin Preparation Methods in Mice.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2019Article
- A review of the AATS guidelines for the prevention and management of sternal wound infections.Indian journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery · 2018Article
- Preoperative disinfection of foot and ankle: microbiological evaluation of two disinfection methods.Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery · 2018Article
- Observational study of patient and surgeon preoperative preparation in ten companion animal clinics in Ontario, Canada.BMC veterinary research · 2013Observational
- The challenge of infection prevention in spine surgery: an update.European journal of orthopaedic surgery & traumatology : orthopedie traumatologie · 2013Review
- Preventing deep wound infection after coronary artery bypass grafting: a review.Texas Heart Institute journal · 2013Review
- Comparison of Povidone-Iodine against a Combination of Chlorhexidine, Cetrimide, and Methylated Spirit Skin Preparation for Clean-Contaminated Laparotomy Operations at Jos University Teaching Hospital.Journal of the West African College of SurgeonsArticle
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo evaluate the clinical effectiveness of preoperative skin antiseptic preparations and application techniques for the prevention of surgical site infections (SSIs).
designSystematic review of the literature using Medline, EMBASE, and other databases, for the period January 2001 to June 2011.
methodsComparative studies (including randomized and nonrandomized trials) of preoperative skin antisepsis preparations and application techniques were included. Two researchers reviewed each study and extracted data using standardized tables developed before the study. Studies were reviewed for their methodological quality and clinical findings.
resultsTwenty studies (n = 9,520 patients) were included in the review. The results indicated that presurgical antiseptic showering is effective for reducing skin flora and may reduce SSI rates. Given the heterogeneity of the studies and the results, conclusions about which antiseptic is more effective at reducing SSIs cannot be drawn.
conclusionsThe evidence suggests that preoperative antiseptic showers reduce bacterial colonization and may be effective at preventing SSIs. The antiseptic application method is inconsequential, and data are lacking to suggest which antiseptic solution is the most effective. Disinfectant products are often mixed with alcohol or water, which makes it difficult to form overall conclusions regarding an active ingredient. Large, well-conducted randomized controlled trials with consistent protocols comparing agents in the same bases are needed to provide unequivocal evidence on the effectiveness of one antiseptic preparation over another for the prevention of SSIs.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.