Efficiency of skin sterilization for a venipuncture with the use of commercially available alcohol or iodine pads

Abstract Skin sterilization for a venipuncture is routinely done with commercially available alcohol or iodine pads. Selection of the antiseptics, alcohol or iodine, however, in most situations has been made on the basis of very little scientific data. With many patients with granulocytopenia who are undergoing venipunctures, the choice of antiseptic may be an important factor in preventing infections. We investigated two widely and commercially available disinfectant pads, alcohol and iodine, in the efficacy of skin sterilization. Seventy subjects (35 adults and 35 children) were randomly selected for this study. A designated area of the right and left forearm was sterilized either with alcohol or with an iodine pad in a predetermined uniform fashion. Specimens were obtained for cultures before and after sterilization. The bacterial cultures were performed with the use of blood agar plates and trypticase soy broth. For data analysis growth of any organisms on agar plates or trypticase soy broth after sterilization was interpreted as a sterilization failure. The iodine swab was significantly more efficient than the alcohol swab; the former yielded an 80% sterilization rate whereas the latter resulted in a rate of 61% ( p Bacillus spp. predominated the residual organisms after either the alcohol or the iodine wipe. A variety of other organisms, however, including Staphylococcus and Corynebacterium spp., grew after alcohol but not after iodine sterilization. We conclude that the iodine sterilization was more effective than alcohol sterilization when each was applied in the manner we used in this study. It is unclear, however, whether the difference detected in our microbiologic assays is clinically significant.