Background: The number of bacteria is important as much as the type of it in developing wound infection. Pressurized irrigation of the surgical wound leads to decrease bacterial number which led to decrease incidence of wound infection.
Objective: to evaluate effectiveness of normal saline irrigation and povidone iodine soaking in decreasing the number of bacteria.
Patient and method: This was a prospective study of 100 patients who were admitted to Al Kadhimyia Teaching Hospital during the period from May 2012 and April 2013 with diagnosis of acute appendicitis. After appendicectomy was done, patients were randomized into two groups, fifty patients (group one) the subcutaneous tissue was irrigated by 200 ml normal saline. The subcutaneous tissue of the other fifty patients (group two) was soaked by 10 percent povidone iodine solution. Swabs were taken from subcutaneous tissue before and after irrigation or soaking in both groups. All swabs were implanted in special type of agars. The number of colonies appeared represents the number of bacteria that grow under the incubation
conditions employed.
Results: there was a significant reduction in the number of bacterial colonies in group I; compared to group II.
Conclusion: Irrigation of the subcutaneous tissue with normal saline is an effective method in decreasing the rate of bacterial contamination when compared to the use of povidone iodine soaking.