Preoperative Sterilization Research Articles

MERCUROCHROME AND IODINE AS DISINFECTANTS OF MUCOUS MEMBRANE OF MOUTH

The experiments here reported were undertaken with a view of ascertaining the relative efficiency of mercurochrome (especially the 2 per cent aqueous solution) and iodine solutions as disinfectants of the surface of the mucous membranes of the mouth. A further reason has been the general popularity of mercurochrome as a substitute for iodine in preoperative sterilization and for various therapeutic purposes within the oral cavity. Interest in this matter was aroused, indirectly, by the reports of Tinker and Sutton¹in 1925 and 1926, and of Scott and Hill²in 1927, and by a very comprehensive report by Simmons³in 1928, all of whom have tested the relative bactericidal action of various mercurochrome solutions and other antiseptics, particularly iodine, from the standpoint of skin disinfection. Tinker and Sutton experimented with a 5 per cent solution of mercurochrome in 50 per cent alcohol, and a 5 per cent alcoholic