Abstract
Purpose: This study compared the effect of two oral care agents on preventing stomatitis and discomfort for acute leukemic patients. Methods: A total of forty patients was enrolled and randomly assigned to sodium bicarbonate or chlorhexidine group. WHO oral toxicity scale was used for measuring stomatitis and Beck’s subjective oral discomfort scale for evaluating oral comfort. Data was collected from August 2009 to February 2010. The data was analyzed using Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, and Mann-Whitney test. Results: Data analyzed was thirty five one. The incidence of stomatitis was 47.4%, 68.8% in sodium bicarbonate and chlohexidine group respectively. The onset of stomatitis was about the 10th and 9th day after chemotherapy initiation, and the duration was 8.0 and 8.67 day respectively. The severity of stomatitis was highest on the 21st day after chemotherapy initiation. There were no statistical differences in the status of stomatitis and the levels of oral comfort during treatment periods. Conclusion: Nurses should routinely assess oral cavity and encourage patients to do oral care actively from second to third week after chemotherapy initiation. Also sodium bicarbonate agent can be recommended to for preventing stomatitis.
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