Oral care in adult critical care

As a student dental hygienist, part of my placement involved providing oral care to patients in the adult intensive care unit (ICU). Initially, I was apprehensive about providing treatment to critically unwell patients, but I found the experience fascinating and it empowered me with a desire to continue involvement once I qualified. Since qualifying in 2016, I have joined the fantastic charity BrushUpUK and hope to visit my local ICU in the near future to assist in developing an oral care programme.

Patients in ICU require specialist care and are dependent on a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to complete even the most simple of daily tasks¹. Previously, oral care was considered to be a luxury rather than a necessity². We now know that a lack of good oral hygiene increases biofilm in the mouth. Patients in ICU are likely to be on a concoction of medications that may have oral side effects such as xerostomia that, in turn, will lead to higher rates of biofilm formation¹.