| Ethics Approval was granted from
the Western Sydney Area Health Service Ethic Committee in August 1999.
Recruitment of research assistants was completed by September 1999. Product
delivery was completed by November 1999 and patient recruitment commenced
in November 1999. Professor Lynn Gilbert is site supervisor for the program
and monthly progress meetings are held to monitor progress and resolve
any clinical issues.
At this stage, the participant recruitment is 47% completed
with 84 participants recruited onto the research program over the 6-month
period. Analysis of outcomes has yet to be undertaken. The initial review
of the data and outcomes will be undertaken when the results of 90 participants
are available.
Adverse events:
To date 1 patient (2.5%) has complained of an unpleasant
aftertaste in relation to the use of the Tea Tree Oil nasal ointment. It
has been rated as mildly unpleasant, or 1 on the 5-point scale. Similarly
1 (2.5%) participant complained of headache after use of Mupirocin nasal
ointment, and this rated a 4 on the 5-point scale. Two participants (2.5%)
complained of dry, scaly skin whilst using the body wash gel – one in each
treatment group, after 15 days of consecutive use. No participants have
withdrawn from the research program due to adverse events from either treatment
group.
In March 2000, the results of the pilot study were presented
at the 4th Decennial International Conference on Nosocomial and Healthcare-Associated
Infections in Atlanta. |
