Alexandre Franco Miranda

Oral care practices for patients in Intensive Care Units: A pilot survey

Objective: To assess the level of knowledge and difficulties concerning hospitalized patients regarding preventive oral health measures among professionals working in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). Study Population and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 71 health professionals working in the ICU. A self-administered questionnaire was used to determine the methods used, frequency, and attitude toward oral care provided to patients in Brazilian ICUs. The variables were analyzed using descriptive statistics (percentages). A one-sample t-test between proportions was used to assess significant differences between percentages. t-statistics were considered statistically significant for P < 0.05. Bonferroni correction was applied to account for multiple testing. Results: Most participants were nursing professionals (80.3%) working 12-h shifts in the ICU (70.4%); about 87.3% and 66.2% reported having knowledge about coated tongue and nosocomial pneumonia, respectively (P < 0.05). Most reported using spatulas, gauze, and toothbrushes (49.3%) or only toothbrushes (28.2%) with 0.12% chlorhexidine (49.3%) to sanitize the oral cavity of ICU patients (P < 0.01). Most professionals felt that adequate time was available to provide oral care to ICU patients and that oral care was a priority for mechanically ventilated patients (80.3% and 83.1%, respectively, P < 0.05). However, most professionals (56.4%) reported feeling that the oral cavity was difficult to clean (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The survey results suggest that additional education is necessary to increase awareness among ICU professionals of the association between dental plaque and systemic conditions of patients, to standardize oral care protocols, and to promote the oral health of patients in ICUs.

Atendimento odontológico domiciliar aos idosos: uma necessidade na prática multidisciplinar em saúde. Revisão de literatura

Home dental service for semi and dependent elderly is a set of preventive actions and minimal intervention aimed at establishing the promotion of oral health and guidance to families and caregivers. It is considered an educational strategy and health care whose purpose is to provide multidisciplinary intervention in the health-disease process of vulnerable elderly. This report aimed to approach home dental practice, emphasizing the main systemic changes and possible repercussions in the oral cavity, the need for effective participation of surgeon-dentist and guidelines to promote oral health that may help family members, caregivers and professionals involved with this type of care. Scientific articles and bibliographic databases on the dental practice-based study in the elderly were searched and analyzed. Search strategy terms were: home care, geriatric dentistry, dental home care, frail elderly, oral health. Inclusion criteria were: published articles in Portuguese; articles indexed in the databases LILACS and SciELO; articles published from 2000 to 2011 and federal laws on the subject, totaling 36 references. It was concluded that there is a great need of home dental activity to be performed by skilled geriatric dentists with geriatric training that can contribute in humanizing care and promote well-being and quality of life for elderly people.

Prevalence of dental trauma in disabled persons seen at the dental clinic for special-needs patients of the Catholic University of Brasília (UCB)

Introduction In Brazil, dental trauma (DT) is considered a public health problem. However, few studies in the literature report the prevalence of DT in disabled persons (DP). Objective The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of DT among DP seen at the Dental Clinic for Special-Needs Patients (COPE) of the Catholic University of Brasilia. Material and method A retrospective, descriptive study analyzing 73 medical charts of DP seen at the COPE between 2014 and 2016 was conducted. Clinical and sociodemographic data were collected. The t-test was used to check for significant differences between the categories of the variables analyzed. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 23.0 (IBM Corporation, Armonk, NY, USA) was used for all statistical analyses (p < 0.05). Result A DT prevalence of 33/73 (45.2%) was found among DP. The predominant type of fracture was crown fracture (26/33-78.8%). The majority of patients were over 20 years old (63/73 - 86.3%), at a proportion significantly higher than those for the other age categories (p < 0.008). The patients in the sample had a variety of diseases, predominantly in the following categories: mental (22/73- 30.1%), multiple (19/73-26%), and systemic (14/73-19.2%). Conclusion A high prevalence of DT was found in DP, with the majority of cases being related to mental and multiple diseases. Further research is needed to assess the prevalence of DT in this patient group throughout the Federal District.