title: Selective decontamination of the digestive tract in intensive care patients.
abstract: Selective decontamination of the digestive tract (SDD) is a strategy designed to prevent or minimize infection in the intensive care unit. Despite being the best-evaluated manoeuvre ever in intensive care medicine, and one of the few interventions to have been subjected to scientific and statistical appraisal, SDD is still controversial. The reasons for this are discussed in this article.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Microbiology/Infection Control, Royal Liverpool Children's NHS Trust.
authors.forename: H K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: van Saene
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Nunn
authors.forename: C P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Stoutenbeek
mesh_terms: D019072:Antibiotic Prophylaxis / Q000379:methods*; D003422:Critical Care; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods*; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000382:microbiology*