title: Oral care reduces pneumonia in older patients in nursing homes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Aspiration of oral secretions and their bacteria is increasingly being recognized as an important factor in pneumonia. We investigated whether oral care lowers the frequency of pneumonia in institutionalized older people.
  
  
  METHODS
  Survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eleven nursing homes in Japan.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four hundred seventeen patients randomly assigned to an oral care group or a no oral care group.
  
  
  METHODS
  Nurses or caregivers cleaned the patients' teeth by toothbrush after each meal. Swabbing with povidone iodine was additionally used in some cases. Dentists or dental hygienists provided professional care once a week.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pneumonia, febrile days, death from pneumonia, activities of daily living, and cognitive functions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During follow-up, pneumonia, febrile days, and death from pneumonia decreased significantly in patients with oral care. Oral care was beneficial in edentate and dentate patients. Activities of daily living and cognitive functions showed a tendency to improve with oral care.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We suggest that oral care may be useful in preventing pneumonia in older patients in nursing homes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geriatric and Respiratory Medicine, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Takeyoshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoneyama
authors.forename: Mitsuyoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohrui
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mukaiyama
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Okamoto
authors.forename: Kanji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hoshiba
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ihara
authors.forename: Shozo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yanagisawa
authors.forename: Shiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ariumi
authors.forename: Tomonori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Morita
authors.forename: Yasuro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mizuno
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohsawa
authors.forename: Yasumasa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Akagawa
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.forename: Hidetada
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sasaki
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004245:DMF Index; D016321:Dental Care for Aged; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D011015:Pneumonia, Aspiration / Q000517:prevention & control*