Systematic review: which topical agent is more efficacious in the prevention of infections in burn patients?

Topical agents are widely used in the care of burn patients; however the efficacy to prevent local infections and/or sepsis has not been clearly established in studies with a high level of evidence. This systematic review was conducted to assess the comparative efficacy among different topical agents. Material and Methods. The literature search was performed using the Medline database. Key MESH terms were: (burn* or scald*) AND (antibacterial or antibiotic*) AND (topic*) AND (therap* or prophylax*). Only randomized or quasi-randomized clinical trials, with a primary endpoint of local infection and/or sepsis were included. Studies were scored and classified regarding methodological key issues according to their level of evidence. Results. The initial search identified 457 studies of which 14 were eligible for final evaluation, and full text was available for 11 of them. Conclusions. The evidence found in our review does not support differences in efficacy of topical agents to reduce sepsis and/or local infections in burn patients.