Topical honey: for bears, not for ICU catheters?
University Grenoble 1, Medical Polyvalent ICU; Albert Michallon University Hospital, 38000 Grenoble, Cedex 9, France
University Grenoble 1, U 823, Research tem 11: Outcome of airway cancers and critically ill patients
Critical Care 2012, 17:103-104 doi:10.1186/cc11900
See related research by Kwakman et al., http://ccforum.com/content/16/5/R214
Published: 15 January 2013Abstract
Catheters are most often colonized and become infected via the skin and their external surfaces in the ICU. Therefore, topical antimicrobials, including medical honey, placed at the insertion site should decrease skin colonization and catheter infections. This commentary reviews the main studies on, and the possible reasons of, topical antimicrobial failure in ICUs compared to the reported efficacy of chlorhexidine-impregnated dressings.
