VENTILATOR-ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA: DENTISTRY CONTRIBUTIONS

Abstract

<h3>Objectives</h3> The aim of this study was to conduct a narrative review about the importance of oral health care in intensive care units (ICU). <h3>Study Design</h3> For the articles search, the following databases were consulted: PubMed and Scielo, using the descriptors "Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated"; "Dentistry." The Boolean operator used was "and" through the combination: pneumonia, ventilator-associated and dentistry. The search was restricted to publications from the last 5 years. <h3>Results</h3> After the search, 88 articles were found. Oral hygiene with chlorhexidine reduces the risk of developing ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). Some studies also suggest that the oral hygiene protocol performance reduces the length of stay in the ICU and, consequently, reduces the costs of hospitalization. In addition, the greatest risk factor for the VAP development was the high ventilation time. <h3>Conclusions</h3> VAP is one of the most common infections and one of the biggest causes of death in the ICU. The hospital dentistry team's presence leads to a significant improvement in oral health. Thus, the implementation of oral hygiene care reduces VAP frequency; it has a positive impact on the systemic health, and it reduces hospitalization costs.