Selective decontamination of the digestive tract: an update of the evidence.

Selective decontamination of the digestive tract has been proven to prevent severe infections and to reduce mortality in critically ill patients. Historical arguments against its use, like the development of bacterial resistance and the absence of influence on mortality, have not been confirmed. Recent clinical trials designed to evaluate these variables and meta-analyses showed remarkable reductions in the incidence of resistant bacteria and a significant beneficial effect on survival. This review will update the evidence on the efficacy of selective decontamination of the digestive tract, and the issue of emergence of resistance, using data from randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses.

Selective decontamination of the digestive tract as infection prevention in the critically ill. A level 1 evidence-based strategy.

Selective decontamination of the digestive tract (SDD) evolved into evidence-based medicine as a tool to prevent infections in critically ill patients. It significantly reduces mortality, pneumonia, bloodstream infections and the onset of resistance if the full four-component regimen is used. The use of only oral decontamination may reduce the incidence of pneumonia, but it has no significant impact on mortality. Moreover, the full SDD protocol significantly reduces the fecal carriage of multiresistant aerobic Gram-negative bacteria, whereas oral decontamination only is associated with increased carriage of multiresistant aerobic Gram-negative bacilli.