Are sterile water and brushes necessary for hand washing before surgery in Japan?
PURPOSE: To examine whether sterile water and brushes are necessary for hand washing before surgery. METHOD: Twenty-two operating room nurses were randomly divided into two groups as follows: 11 nurses who used 7.5% povidone iodine (PVI group) and another 11 nurses who used 4% chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG group) to wash their hands using the rubbing method. All the nurses were examined for bacterial contamination of their hands before and after surgical hand rubbing. We used tap water to wash the hands at the sink used for washing surgical instruments in the operating room and non sterilized plastic brushes. RESULTS: No bacteria were detected in the tap water. Before washing the hands, the number of bacteria detected was 5.0 x 10(3) cfu/H in the PVI group and 4.0 x 10(3) cfu/H in the CHG group, which were similar in both groups. After washing the hands, the median value of the bacteria decreased to 8.7 x 10(2) cfu/H in the PVI group and 0 cfu/H in the CHG group. CONCLUSIONS: Sterile wa
