Randomised controlled trials comparing Prontosan with saline or water in the NHS are needed.
The committee concluded that further research is needed to address the uncertainties about the clinical effectiveness of Prontosan compared with saline or water. It recommended that randomised controlled trials should be done in the NHS. These should compare Prontosan with saline or water in different types of chronic wounds. The randomised controlled trial needs to be well designed to detect clinically meaningful results in subgroups (for example, pressure ulcers or venous leg ulcers). The committee agreed that a key outcome should be time to complete wound healing. The number of dressing changes should also be recorded for each wound included in the study. Other important outcomes should include pain and wound odour, measured using patient reported outcome measures (PROMs).