Importância da reabilitação oral de pacientes graves pós COVID-19: uma revisão bibliográfica na perspectiva nutricional

Abstract

Introduction: Dysphagia can be considered any difficulty in the effective conduction of food from the mouth to the stomach by means of interrelated phases, controlled by a complex neuromotor mechanism or it can also be characterized as a disturbance in swallowing and/or potential inability to swallow. In view of the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus, one of the treatments of choice established for severe cases of this virus is invasive mechanical ventilation, with a chance of pulmonary sequelae, the context is characterized as a risk for the development of dysphagia. Coping with the pandemic caused by this virus has become a major challenge and nutritional therapy is shown to be a fundamental part of comprehensive care in the care of critically ill patients. Thus, oral rehabilitation can provide favorable results regarding the health of critically ill patients after COVID-19. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the importance of oral rehabilitation and its relationship with nutritional risk in critically ill patients after COVID-19. Methods: Bibliographic review, carried out a survey of scientific literature in the databases of Latin American and Caribbean Literature in Health Sciences (LILACS), Virtual Health Library of the Ministry of Health (VHL), Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO) and National Library of Medicine (PUBMED). Articles in English, Portuguese and Spanish, that related to the keywords Swallowing disorders were selected; Intensive Care Unit, COVID-19, Nutritional Therapy and Rehabilitation. Results: Five studies were chosen, which observed high rates of development of dysphagia after orotracheal extubation in patients after COVID-19, in addition to the increased risk of malnutrition. Conclusion: In light of the above, the importance of oral rehabilitation in critically ill patients after COVID-19 is clear. However, because the literature on this topic is scarce, further studies are needed to validate these findings.