Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)-coronavirus (CoV)-2 is transmitted through respiratory droplets and physical contact from contaminated surfaces to the mucosa. Hand hygiene and oral decontamination along with other measures are critical to prevent the spread of the virus. A recent study described the in vitro virucidal activity of topical and oral povidone-iodine (PVP-I) products against SARS-CoV-2.

In this study, the virucidal activity of PVP-I against SARS-CoV-2 was assessed with Suspension assays. Contact time of 30 s was selected to test the products for their virucidal activity. Viral titres were calculated and documented as median tissue culture infectious dose (TCID50)/mL.

The results displayed that antiseptic solution (PVP-I 10%), skin cleanser (PVP-I 7.5%), gargle and mouth wash (PVP-I 1%) and throat spray (PVP-I 0.45%), all accomplished ≥ 99.99% virucidal activity against SARS-CoV-2, and all of them demonstrated ≥ 4 log10 reductions of virus titre, within 30 s of contact.

Thus the rapid and effective virucidal activity of PVP-I against SARS-CoV-2 was displayed by this study. PVP-I-based products are readily available for medical and personal use for hand hygiene and oral decontamination and thus could be employed in coronavirus disease, COVID-19, infection control measures in hospital and community settings.

Source: Anderson DE, Sivalingam V, Kang AEZ. et al. Povidone-Iodine Demonstrates Rapid In Vitro Virucidal Activity Against SARS-CoV-2, The Virus Causing COVID-19 Disease. Infect Dis Ther 2020; 9: 669–675. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40121-020-00316-