title: Effective elimination of contaminants after oral care in elderly institutionalized individuals.
abstract: After mechanical cleaning in oral care, eliminating residual oral contaminants has an important role in preventing their aspiration, especially in individuals with weak airway protection. We examined the effectiveness of wiping the oral cavity after oral care on eliminating contaminants in 31 patients who were hospitalized in our neurology inpatient unit. The amount of bacteria on the tongue, palate, and buccal vestibule was counted before and just after oral care, after eliminating contaminants either by rinsing with water and suction or by wiping with mouth wipes, and 1 h after oral care. Oral bacteria amounts were decreased significantly by both elimination procedures after oral care. These findings suggest that wiping with mouth wipes is as effective as mouth rinsing to decrease bacteria following oral care. With a lower risk of contaminant aspiration, wiping may be a suitable alternative to rinsing, especially in dysphagic individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Mayumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Tatsuto
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miki
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Masako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Atsumi
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayumi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Inagaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Eri
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mizuguchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Japan.
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meguro
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Japan.
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kanamori
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuharu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakagawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Risa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Keiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mano
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Akiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aihara
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hane
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Japan.
authors.forename: Tatsuro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mutoh
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Japan. Electronic address: kmatsuo@fujita-hu.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Koichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsuo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007326:Institutionalization; D008297:Male; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology; D009910:Oral Hygiene; D011446:Prospective Studies
keywords: Dysphagia; Oral bacteria; Oral care; Oral contaminants; Rinsing; Wiping