Prevention of pneumonia in respiratory patients by oral application of povidone iodine

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K19316
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 57080:Social dentistry-related
• Research Institution: Nagasaki University
• Principal Investigator: Kawakita Akiko (宇田晃子) 長崎大学, 医歯薬学総合研究科(歯学系), 客員研究員 (10647241)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 人工呼吸器関連肺炎 / ポビドンヨード / 口腔ケア / 細菌数定量

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Ventilator-related pneumonia (VAP) is one of the most serious complications in the intensive care unit. Since VAP is thought to be caused by aspiration of pathogenic microorganisms in the oropharyngeal fluid into the lower respiratory tract, reducing the number of bacteria in the oral cavity is one of the preventive measures.
In this study, oral care was performed with oxidol and povidone iodine, and the bacteria in the oropharyngeal fluid were quantitatively analyzed using real-time PCR. As a result, it was clarified that the number of bacteria in the pharyngeal fluid was reduced by oral care, but that it proliferated again after 3 hours, and that the effect of reducing the number of bacteria was sustained for about 3 hours when cleaning with povidone iodine was added.

Free Research Field

口腔外科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

VAPは集中治療室における最も重大な合併症の一つである。海外ではクロルヘキシジンを用いた口腔ケアによりVAPを予防することが一般的となっているが、本邦では同薬剤や粘膜への使用が禁忌となっている。本研究によりオキシドールとポビドンヨードを用いる口腔ケアにより口腔咽頭貯留液中の細菌増殖が抑制できることがreal-time PCR解析の結果明らかとなり、今後VAP予防法として普及することが期待できる。