Are iodophor-impregnated drapes associated with lower intraoperative contamination compared to no adhesive drape?: A protocol for systematic review and meta analysis

Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most frightening complications after surgery. Adhesive drapes (AD) are widely used as an infection prevention tool. They can be non-impregnated or iodophor-impregnated, although non-impregnated are less used as they might be related to higher number of infections. One of the most common ways to study their efficacy is by analyzing the intraoperative contamination, which is a useful primary endpoint as it does not need follow-up and it has been strongly associated with infections. Therefore, we believe a systematic review (SR) and meta-analysis is needed to determine which is the literature available about this topic and to explore their results. METHODS: All randomized controlled trials (RCT) published since 1984 through to January 15, 2023 will be included. Non-human and experimental studies will be excluded. We will only include studies written in English. We will conduct searches in the following electronic databases: MEDLINE (via PubMed), SCOPUS and Web Of Science. The protocol of the SR was registered in PROSPERO under the number CRD42023391651 and was written according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocol guidelines. DISCUSSION: The evidence regarding the benefits of using iodophor-impregnated adhesive drapes (IIAD) is scarce. Therefore, this SR and meta-analysis is required to determine if they are related with a lower intraoperative contamination incidence, compared to no AD.