Lack of antimicrobial efficacy of mecetronium etilsulfate in propanol-based hand rubs for surgical hand disinfection.

The aim of this study was to determine if mecetronium etilsulfate (MES) contributes to overall efficacy in surgical hand disinfection. Three blinded hand rubs (45% iso-propanol, 30% n-propanol) were applied for 1.5 min and compared with the EN 12791 reference procedure (crossover design). One commercial hand rub contained 0.2% MES, and the two other hand rubs were identical apart from 0.2% MES. None of the formulations had a log10 reduction after 3 h that was significantly better compared with the reference procedure [mean 1.72 (standard deviation 1.15)]. The antimicrobial contribution of MES in hand rubs is questionable.