Clinical application of skin antisepsis using aqueous olanexidine: a scoping review

Surgical site infections (SSIs) and catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) caused by bacteria from surfaces poorly disinfected with chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) and povidone-iodine (PVP-I) are increasing. Olanexidine gluconate (OLG) was developed in 2015 in Japan to prevent SSI and CRBSI caused by bacteria resistant to CHG and PVP-I. This scoping review aimed to identify the knowledge gap between what is known and what is not known about the disinfection efficacy of OLG. We searched MEDLINE through PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform search database, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Web-based database of Japanese medical articles for works published to July 18, 2021. Manual reference searches were also carried out. A total of 131 studies were screened. Forty-seven studies were included in this review and classified into two major categories: studies on pharmacological effects and spectrum (n = 29) and studies on clinical and adverse effects (n = 18). Olanexidine gluconate showed bactericidal activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant enterococci, in addition to common Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In clinical settings, although there is limited evidence on SSI prevention, 1.5% OLG might be more effective than 10% PVP-I and 1% CHG in preventing SSI. However, the clinical usefulness of OLG is unclear due to the limited number of clinical studies. Also, clinical research is limited to studies targeting SSI prevention, and there are no clinical studies on CRBSI. Further clinical studies are needed on SSI and CRBSI prevention.