An Independent In Vitro Comparison of Povidone Iodine and SteriLid®

Aim: Povidone iodine (PI) and SteriLid (R) (SL) are biocides used to decrease bacterial load on the eyelid margin. We compared the antibacterial activity of PI and SL to determine the better antiseptic. Methods: Time-kill studies of PI and SL against a battery of bacteria that included Staphylocococcus epidermidis, methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Bacillus cereus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Serratia marcescens, and Branhamella catarrhalis were conducted at time points 1, 2, 10, and 30 min. The comparative outcome measures were based on 90% and 99.9% decreases in bacterial colony counts. Results: PI was more effective at a 90% kill than SL at time points, 1 min (89 vs. 7 9), 2 min (9 9 vs. 6 9), 10 min (9/9 vs. 8/9), and 30min (9/9 vs. 8/9). PI was more effective at a 99.9% kill than SL at time points, 1 min (5/9 vs. 3/9), 2 min (7/9 vs. 4/9), 10 min (9/9 vs. 4/9), and 30 min (9/9 vs. 6/9). Conclusions: Our study supports PI as an effective antiseptic for decreasing the bacterial load that can exist on the eyelid margin. SL appears to be a less effective alternative.