Polixetonium is a cationic polymer used in rigid gas permeable contact lens solutions. It is a biocide and pesticide. It is also used as a swimming pool disinfectant and algistat. It appears to be more effective against moulds than PQ-1.

Polihexanide is a broad-spectrum antiseptic with excellent cell and tissue tolerability, ability to bind to the organic matrix, low risk of contact sensitization, and wound healing promoting effect. Polihexanide interacts with acidic, negatively charged phospholipids in the bacterial membrane, leading to increased fluidity, permeability and loss of integrity, followed by the death of the organism. Polihexanide is also transferred to the cytoplasm, where it leads to disruption of the bacterial metabolism. Neutral phospholipids on the other hand are little or not affected by Polihexanide. This is commonly seen as the main reason for the low toxicity of Polihexanide against human cells and its high therapeutic range. Due to its nonspecific, strong interaction with negatively charged phospholipids, Polihexanide has a broad antimicrobial spectrum, including Gram-positive and Gramnegative bacteria, plaque-forming and biofilm-building bacteria, spore-forming bacteria (but not bacterial spores), intracellular bacteria such as chlamydiae and mycoplasma, and fungi including Candida spp. as well as Aspergillus spp. Polihexanide is classified as ‘practically nontoxic’. The therapeutic index of Polihexanide is more than 200-fold that of chlorhexidine.