We did a meta-analysis of all 14 retrieved studies13,14,16–27 to
assess the pooled eff ect of oral care with topical
chlorhexidine or povidone-iodine on the occurrence of
ventilator-associated pneumonia. This analysis showed
an important reduction of the disease (p=0·004; fi gure 2),
with a moderate statistical heterogeneity. Subgroup
analysis based on type of antiseptic showed a signifi cant
reduction in cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia in
the chlorhexidine studies, but the eff ect resulting from
povidone-iodine remains unclear (fi gure 2).the providone-iodine subanalysis was based fewer studise , and also showed the larger heterogeneity and broader CIs (fi gure 2).