Intra-operative disinfection and recolonisation

The project has the aim to measure the time to recolonisation of the skin after
disinfection with chlorhexidine solution in ethanol as well as to confirm whether plastic adhesive drape or microbial sealant facilitates skin recolonisation and enhances bacterial growth. To measure this, a single-blinded, randomized, controlled study has been conducted in 140 patients scheduled for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or/and valve repair via median sternotomy. Before this RCT study a pilot study with healthy volunteers the recolonisation of the skin with or without plastic adhesive drape was performed in which we found that recolonisation of the skin of the chest occurred earlier using plastic adhesive drape compared with bare skin, and that there were significantly more positive cultures from the skin with the plastic adhesive drape than without. Furthermore, the projects also includes a RCT study in 220 patients undergoing implantation of pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillator or cardiac resynchronization therapy under local anesthesia with the aim to compare warm versus cold skin disinfection with clorhexidine solution on bacterial growth as well as skin temperatures and patients experiences of the disinfection. A power calculation based noninferority design has taken into consideration based on the results from a pilot study in 10 healthy volunteers with the same aim.