Preparation of the vagina for surgery. A comparison of povidone-iodine and saline solution.

Patients undergoing major vaginal surgery and treated with prophylactic antibiotics were assigned to two groups in which the effectiveness of preoperative vaginal preparation with povidone-iodine was compared with that of saline solution. There was no difference in postoperative morbidity between the two groups, although a few more infections occurred in the group treated with povidone-iodine. It is suggested that simple dilution of the quantity of bacteria in the vagina is all that is essential for adequate preoperative vaginal preparation.