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Comparison of surgical preparation techniques finds no significant difference in contamination rates
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ORLANDO, Fla. — Three surgical preparation techniques were examined for bacterial contamination after strabismus surgery, with differing results found.
"There were no statistically significant differences in suture or needle contamination rates despite more meticulous surgical preparation of the surgical field during strabismus surgery," Lena V. Chheda, MD, and colleagues said in a poster study at the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus meeting.
The study looked at 77 consecutive patients who underwent two-muscle strabismus surgery and were randomized into three groups.
Group A (27 subjects) had a skin preparation with 5% povidone-iodine to the periocular skin and bulbar conjunctivae. Group B (26 subjects) had the same preparation, with "eyelashes and eyebrows ... scrubbed with 5% povidone-iodine on cotton tip applicators, and the drape was placed to exclude the eyebrows from the surgical field." Group C (24 subjects) had the same preparation as Group B with a bladed lid speculum employed to remove the eyelashes from the surgical field.
The study found that Group A had a contamination rate of 6.2%; Group B, 4.9%; and Group C, 9.4%.
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