Prevention of infectious complications after transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy: comparison of povidone-iodine, chlorhexidine, and formalin disinfection

PURPOSE: We aimed to compare the efficacy of three different antiseptic methods to determine the most effective prophylactic approach to prevent infectious complications after transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUS-PB). The methods evaluated were transrectal povidone-iodine injection (TRPI), biopsy needle disinfection with chlorhexidine, and biopsy needle disinfection with formalin. METHODS: Between January 2018 and January 2023, 904 patients who underwent TRUS-PB were retrospectively analyzed. All patients had prophylactic antibiotic use and negative urine/rectal culture results. Patients were divided into three groups according to the antiseptic protocol: Group 1 (n = 245) received only TRPI injection into the rectum before biopsy, Group 2 (n = 295) received only chlorhexidine needle disinfection before biopsy, and Group 3 (n = 364) received only formalin needle disinfection before biopsy. The biopsy needles used in our clinic are not single-use and are used on other patients after sterilization. The primary endpoint was the incidence of infectious complications within 30 days post-procedure. Continuous variables were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test, while categorical variables were analyzed using the Chi-square test, and post-hoc analysis was applied for pairwise comparisons between groups. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate factors associated with postoperative infection. RESULTS: The overall infection rate was 20.4%. Infection rates were 4.5% in the TRPI group, 16.6% in the chlorhexidine group, and 34.1% in the formalin group (p < 0.001). The TRPI group showed significantly lower rates of all infectious complications compared to other groups. Disinfection of biopsy needles with chlorhexidine was found to be significantly more effective in preventing infectious complications compared to disinfection with formalin (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: TRPI injection before TRUS-PB appears to be more effective in preventing post-biopsy infectious complications compared to needle disinfection with chlorhexidine or formalin. This method may be considered as a preferred antiseptic approach for TRUS-PB procedures.