title: Oral care planning and handling of immunosuppressed heart, liver, and kidney transplant patients.
abstract: In order to provide dentists with specific guidelines regarding appropriate oral treatments for transplant patients, their timing, and the prophylactic steps that must be taken in their handling, a two-phase study was undertaken. In the first phase, the effectiveness of an initial oral hygiene training and motivation program was evaluated by statistical testing of the observed differences in gingival overgrowth and plaque and gingivitis scores between a study group and a control group, each consisting of 46 heart and liver transplant patients. Significantly higher scores were observed in the control group. In the second phase, the effectiveness of a set of prophylactic measures was tested in 530 periodontal treatments and 380 dental treatments, applied in 120 heart, liver, and kidney transplant patients who showed no significant complications. It was concluded that all transplant patients should be monitored by a dentist, and that the recommended procedure is effective in preventing oral treatment complications.
authors.affiliation: Complutense University, Faculty of Dentistry (Facultad de Odontología), Department of Oral Medicine and Surgery, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Somacarrera
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lucas
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cuervas-Mons
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hernández
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017742:Dental Care for Chronically Ill / Q000379:methods*; D003777:Dental Prophylaxis / Q000379:methods; D016027:Heart Transplantation / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D016867:Immunocompromised Host; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000276:immunology*; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000276:immunology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011300:Preoperative Care