Comparison of the Efficacy of Povidone-Iodine with Mupirocin in Decolonizing Staphylococcus aureus from the Nasal Cavity of Healthcare Workers: A Single-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial

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Abstract
Background: Nasal colonization of Staphylococcus aureus increases the risk of nosocom-ial infections. Therefore, medications that can decolonize this pathogen can help prevent such infec-tions. Objective: Our study aimed to compare the efficacy of povidone-iodine solution with intranasal mupi-rocin ointment in decolonizing S. aureus from the nasal cavity of healthcare workers. Methods: This single-blinded randomized controlled trial was conducted on healthcare workers car-rying S. aureus nasally. After confirming nasal colonization through culture tests, participants were assigned to intervention groups A and B with an allocation ratio of 1:1. Group A received intranasal mupirocin ointment twice daily for five days, while group B received intranasal povidone-iodine so-lution twice daily for five days. After the decolonization period, samples were taken to compare the efficacy of both interventions in decolonizing S. aureus. Results: In this study, 54 healthcare workers with a mean age of 39.37±7.80 years were included, 42.6% and 57.4% of whom were male and female, respectively. They were randomly assigned to each of the intervention groups. After the intervention, individuals who received povidone-iodine had significantly more positive cultures than those who received mupirocin (37.0% vs. 11.1%, P = 0.026). Additionally, factors such as age, gender, wards, and employment duration may affect the efficacy of mupirocin and povidone-iodine in decolonizing S. aureus from the nasal cavity. Conclusion: The study findings revealed that both mupirocin and povidone-iodine were effective in decolonizing S. aureus from nasal carriers. However, mupirocin was more effective compared with povidone-iodine.

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