Do povidone-iodine (betadine) soaked dressings reduce the rate of infections in open wounds?
Date First Published:
April 13, 2008
Last Updated:
May 19, 2008
Report by:
Charlotte Osborn, Staff Nurse (York Hospital)
Search checked by:
Dr Martin Kelsey, York Hospital
Three-Part Question:
In [patients awaiting wound closure] does the [application of an inadine soaked dressing] reduce the [incidence of wound infection]?
Clinical Scenario:
A 25 year old man attends A&E in the early hours with a deep knife wound to his forearm. The plastic surgeon wants to take him to theatre for exploration the following morning and asks for a betadine (povidone-iodine) dressing to be applied. The wound looks clean and you wonder if this is likely to alter the likelihood of the wound becoming infected.
Search Strategy:
BNI 1985 - present
Medline 1950 - present
Cinahl 1981 - present
Medline 1950 - present
Cinahl 1981 - present
Search Details:
[exp betadine OR iodine OR inadine OR povidone-iodine] AND [wound OR wound infection OR infection] Limit to human and english language
Outcome:
No papers were identified which directly answered the above question. One literature review was identified summarising the role of povidone-iodine in wound management.
Author Commentary:
We have been unable to identify a study which answers the given question. There are numerous in vitro studies demonstrating the anit-bacterial properties of povidone-iodine as well as research into it's use in elective surgery and chronic wound management. There is some debate as to whether povidone-iodine adversely effects wound healing.
Bottom Line:
Although there are no studies looking at the use of povidone-iodine in the acute setting it would seem reasonable to continue it's use. It is unlikely to cause harm and has been shown to be beneficial in elective surgery at reducing infection rates.