not long ago,results were published showing a reduction in catheter-related blood stream infections through the use of chg for bathing icu patients:
effectiveness of chlorhexidine bathing to reduce catheter-associated bloodstream infections in medical intensive care unit patients
archives of internal medicine,2007, vol. 167, no19, pp. 2073-2079
i am looking to hear from anyone who has attempted to replicate these results or who currently uses chg wipres or soap for patient bathing. i would like to get my floor to consider the possibility.
While we have no protocol for using Chlorhexidine baths yet in our unit, I have suggested it to a member of the Infection Prevention team. I suppose my main concern over making chlorhexidine baths standard practice would be the risk of CHG resistant bacteria. Anyone else share this concern? I suppose that eventually any antiseptic is going to go the way of Triclosan, but the longer CHG could work the better...considering we use it for nearly everything.
Be_Moore
264 Posts
While we have no protocol for using Chlorhexidine baths yet in our unit, I have suggested it to a member of the Infection Prevention team. I suppose my main concern over making chlorhexidine baths standard practice would be the risk of CHG resistant bacteria. Anyone else share this concern? I suppose that eventually any antiseptic is going to go the way of Triclosan, but the longer CHG could work the better...considering we use it for nearly everything.