• Imran Ahmed, Adam Jonathan Boulton, Sana Rizvi, William Carlos, Edward Dickenson, N A Smith, and Mike Reed.
• Clinical Trials Unit, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK imran.ahmed4@nhs.net.
• BMJ Open. 2019 Sep 3; 9 (9): e029727.

Introduction And ObjectivesSurgical site infections (SSIs) represent a common and serious complication of all surgical interventions. Microorganisms are able to colonise sutures that are implanted in the skin, which is a causative factor of SSIs. Triclosan-coated sutures are antibacterial sutures aimed at reducing SSIs. Our objective is to update the existing literature by systematically reviewing available evidence to assess the effectiveness of triclosan-coated sutures in the prevention of SSIs.MethodsA systematic review of EMBASE, MEDLINE, AMED (Allied and complementary medicine database) and CENTRAL was performed to identify full text randomised controlled trials (RCTs) on 31 May 2019.InterventionTriclosan-coated sutures versus non-triclosan-coated sutures.Primary OutcomeOur primary outcome was the development of SSIs at 30 days postoperatively. A meta-analysis was performed using a fixed-effects model.ResultsTwenty-five RCTs were included involving 11 957 participants. Triclosan-coated sutures were used in 6008 participants and non triclosan-coated sutures were used in 5949. Triclosan-coated sutures significantly reduced the risk of SSIs at 30 days (relative risk 0.73, 95% CI 0.65 to 0.82). Further sensitivity analysis demonstrated that triclosan-coated sutures significantly reduced the risk of SSIs in both clean and contaminated surgery.ConclusionTriclosan-coated sutures have been shown to significantly reduced the risk of SSIs when compared with standard sutures. This is in agreement with previous work in this area. This study represented the largest review to date in this area. This moderate quality evidence recommends the use of triclosan-coated sutures in order to reduce the risk of SSIs particularly in clean and contaminated surgical procedures.Prospero Registration NumberCRD42014014856.© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

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