Can Nonsterile Gloves for Dermatologic Procedures Be Cost-Effective without Compromising Infection Rates?

Over the last decade, studies have compared the use of sterile gloves (SGs) versus nonsterile gloves (NSGs) on surgical site infection (SSI) rates in Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS). In this study, we sought to determine SSI rates before and after employment of NSGs for dermatologic procedures. Infection data were collected from January 2009 to December 2015 on 7365 tumors treated with MMS and 1620 tumors treated by surgical excision. For MMS procedures using chlorhexidine as the antiseptic, the SSI rate with SGs was 3.39% compared to 3.06% with NSGs. For surgical excisions, the SSI rate was 3.02% with SGs and 4.17% with NSG. Using NSGs for MMS tumor resection and reconstruction can provide cost savings without adversely affecting SSI rates, and could also be considered in dermatologic procedures, including electrodessication and curettage and surgical excisions.