Effectiveness of Normal Saline Irrigation in Reducing Wound Contamination during Oral Cancer Surgery: A Cytological Analysis.

Background: Tumour manipulation during surgery can lead to the dissemination of malignant cells and potential wound contamination. Despite the widespread practice of irrigating surgical sites with normal saline, the efficacy of this measure in reducing epithelial contamination in oral cancer surgery remains unclear.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the proportion of normal saline wash effluents contaminated by epithelial cells or debris during oral cavity cancer surgery, and to evaluate the effectiveness of saline irrigation in reducing contamination.