Surgical burn secondary to the use of alcoholic chlorhexidine.

Surgical wound infection is one of the main sources of postoperative morbidity/mortality. Skin preparation with an antiseptic agent such as chlorhexidine alcohol solution is an effective method to reduce the incidence of surgical wound infections. Nevertheless, the use of alcohol solutions is associated with some risk as they are inflammable products. We report a case of a 51-year-old male who suffered an extensive burn associated with concurrent use of electrocautery and clorhexidine alcohol solution.