Evaluation of pneumonia indexes associated with mechanical ventilation in a COVID-19 unit with dentist

AbstractObjective:The aim of this research is to evaluate whether there was a difference after the insertion of the dental surgeon in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) that cares for patients with COVID-19 in relation to VAP control, length of stay and mortality.Materials and methodsThe dentist was added to the multidisciplinary team for three months. A training session with the nurses and nursing technicians was held at the start of every month. The Hospital Infection Control Service gathered data on VAP, hospital stay length, and ICU mortality in the three months before and three months after the dentist joined the team.Results:After statistical analysis, the hospitalization rate increased in the period in which the dentist was working in the COVID-19 unit, but the p value was not significant in this variant (p > 0.062). The percentage of VAP in the period before and after the dentist's intervention in the COVID-19 unit decreased with a significant difference between the evaluated periods (p < 0.0001). Regarding mortality, it was found that there was an increase in the number of deaths over time, however without statistical significance (p > 0.2790).ConclusionThe pandemic came to confirm the importance of dental care in the hospital environment and the integration of the professional dentist in the health team, contributing to the oral health and quality of life of critical patients.Clinical significance:As a contribution to clinical practice, our study shows that the increase in the number of dentists in the multidisciplinary teams, providing training and support to the team with oral care in critically ill patients, together with the fixed protocol on hygiene in intubated patients passed on to the team at the beginning of each month, added to her interest in learning correctly, contributed significantly to the reduction of VAP.