Decametoxin-based anti-septic solutions vs povidone-iodine in preventive therapy of the skin in venous catheter care

The anesthesiologist and specialist on medical emergency conditions, Nephrologist, Surgeon, Gastroenterologist, Oncologist, Hematologist, Orthopaedic Trauma, Dermato-venereal diseases, Otolaryngologist, Endocrinologist, Ophthalmologist, Infectious disease, Pediatrician, Cardiologist, Pulmonologist, Combustiology, General practitioner, Expert in narcology, Transfusiologist, Neurologist, Urologist, Obstetrician-gynecologist, Neurosurgeon, Tuberculosis specialist

Military Medical Clinical Center of the Central Region
National Pirogov Memorial Medical University, Vinnytsya
740 Regional Sanitary Epidiological Detachment


Summary. The main route of development of catheter-associated sepsis is a secondary contamination of subcutaneous tunnel by the patient’s own skin microflora. There is long and positive experience of application of decametoxin-based antiseptics Amosept and Horosten for skin decontamination. In this study we compare effectiveness of antiseptic solutions on the basis of decametoxin and Povidone-iodine for preventive treatment of patients’ skin before installing and during the use of vascular catheter. Also the influence of application of different skin antiseptics on the rate of catheter-associated infections was studied. After the treatment of the skin by decametoxin-based antiseptics microorganisms were not appearing. In 3 hours after treatment by Povidone-iodine there was found the number of microorganisms resulting in 3.2 CFU/cm2, in case of Amosept application – 0.9, and alcohol solution of decametoxin – 0.3. In 24 hours after the processing the differences in the number of microorganisms on the skin in Povidone-iodine and Amosept group slightly decreased. The areas of skin treated by 0.1 % alcohol solution of decametoxin remained the least contaminated. Treatment of skin by Amosept or 0.1 % alcohol solution of decametoxin resulted in decreasing of the rate of catheter-associated infections by 3.5 and 12.5 % respectively, as compared to the treatment by Povidone-iodine – 52 %.

Key words: decametoxin, catheter, infection, prevention, skin decontamination.