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Effectiveness of Chlorhexidine Compared to Other Antiseptic Solutions in Preventing Surgical Site Infections in Low- and Middle- Income Countries: A Systematic Review
Surgical site infections (SSIs) are a challenging complication that involves multifactorial measures to effectively prevent the occurrence of SSIs in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). Chlorhexidine is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that is widely used in surgical antiseptic solutions in order to prevent SSIs, however the use of chlorhexidine is not used in all global surgery settings, especially in LMICs, due to factors such as availability and cost. This systematic review aims to explore the effectiveness of chlorhexidine compared to other surgical antiseptic preparations in preventing SSIs in LMICs. On November 24, 2023, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane and EBSCO, which were accessed via Rocky Vista University’s overarching database search tool, were searched using Boolean search terms. Information and data from 12 articles were selected to be included in this review, and the included articles were a combination of various clinical trials, study protocols, surveys and commentaries. Overall, there was conflicting information between the included articles, with some articles such as the FALCON trial concluding that there is no significant difference between the use of chlorhexidine compared to other antiseptic surgical preparations, and others stating that chlorhexidine is more effective. Due to the limited amount of included articles that were data from true clinical trials, this review reveals the need for more clinical trials to be done comparing the cost effectiveness, availability and local acceptance of CHX implementation in global surgery protocols, especially for LMICs. Further research could then lead to a more standardized, evidence-based approach to the reduction of SSIs in global surgery, thus improving surgical outcomes in LMICs.