Höfundar:
Helga Helgadóttir, Sveinbjörn Gizurarson
Skin infections are common and can be caused by various pathogens including bacteria. Lipids have shown broad activity against various bacteria’s that infect the skin. Monocaprin and monolaurin are 1-monoglicerides and have been intensively investigated for their antimicrobial activities, where they show a robust antimicrobial effect with a peculiar mechanism of action. This mechanism is important because microbes cannot develop tolerance or resistance towards this mechanism. The aim was to test the effect of a Medical Device (CAP) containing monoglycerides on skin infections in a randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled study.
A total of 35 subjects participated in the study. 7 had skin infections, 4 athlete’s foot, and 24 intertrigo. In total 18 subjects were treated with the active CAP formulation and 17 with placebo-formulation without the monoclycerides. Before and after treatment the severity of the infection was assessed clinically and by cultivating bacteria from the infected area at the Microbiological Department at the University Hospital.
Results showed that the Medical Device significantly eliminated bacteria from infected skin. It eliminated 91.6±11.2% of all bacteria identified in the infected area, compared with 63.2±45.8% in the placebo group (p<0.05). Also, when the severity of the infected area was analyzed, CAP was able to reduce the severity by 80.6±17.3%, compared to 9.2±35.0% when the placebo-formulation was used (p<0.05). In conclusion, the Medical Device was found to be beneficial for all three types of skin infections. The medical device was significantly better than placebo in eliminating the bacteria and reducing the severity of the infection.