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Related Concept Videos

Inflammatory Response II: Inflammatory Exudate and Tissue Repair01:24

Inflammatory Response II: Inflammatory Exudate and Tissue Repair

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The typical wound exudate is odorless, transparent, straw-colored, thin, and watery. Exudate, however, can differ depending on the state of wound healing. Likewise, the exudate's...
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The pre-procedure steps of handwashing include removing jewelry and rolling up sleeves. However, many organizations allow staff to wear wedding rings.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 7, 2026

Assessing Biofilm Dispersal in Murine Wounds
12:18

Assessing Biofilm Dispersal in Murine Wounds

Published on: August 7, 2021

Water for wound cleansing.

R Fernandez1, R Griffiths

  • 1Centre For Applied Nursing Research, Locked bag 7103, Liverpool BC, New South Wales, Australia, 2170. ritin.fernandez@swsahs.nsw.gov.au

The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
|February 7, 2008
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Tap water is effective for cleansing acute wounds in adults, potentially reducing infection rates compared to normal saline. However, evidence for wound cleansing improving healing or reducing infection is not strong.

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Area of Science:

  • Wound Care
  • Infection Control
  • Evidence-Based Medicine

Background:

  • Normal saline is a preferred wound cleansing solution due to its isotonic properties.
  • Tap water is a common, accessible, and cost-effective alternative for wound cleansing, but its efficacy is debated.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials comparing water with other solutions for wound cleansing.
  • To assess the impact of different cleansing agents on wound infection and healing outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic search of multiple electronic databases (Cochrane Wounds Group, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL) and contact with experts.
  • Inclusion of randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials evaluating water versus other solutions for wound cleansing.
  • Independent data extraction and quality assessment by multiple authors, with data pooling using a random effects model where appropriate.

Main Results:

  • Eleven trials were included, comparing water with normal saline, no cleansing, or other solutions.
  • Tap water showed potential in reducing infection rates for acute wounds in adults compared to normal saline (RR 0.63, 95% CI 0.40 to 0.99).
  • No significant differences in infection rates were observed when comparing tap water to no cleansing or for acute wounds in children.

Conclusions:

  • Evidence suggests tap water does not increase infection in acute adult wounds and may reduce it.
  • There is limited strong evidence that wound cleansing itself significantly enhances healing or reduces infection.
  • Boiled, cooled, or distilled water are suitable alternatives when potable tap water is unavailable.