Investigating the Effect of Selective Oropharyngeal Decontamination Using Topical Antibiotics on Oropharyngeal and Tracheal Colonization in Trauma Patients Admitted to the Intensive Care Units of Zahedan, Iran: A Clinical Trial Study

Pneumonia is one of the most common hospital-acquired infections, where 86% is associated with mechanical ventilation, known as ventilator- associated pneumonia (VAP). Oropharyngeal decontamination reduces the incidence of VAP by medicinal agents. The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of oropharyngeal decontamination using topical antibiotics on oropharyngeal and tracheal colonization of trauma patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). The present double-blind clinical trial was performed on trauma patients, who underwent endotracheal intubation during the first 24 hours, at the ICU of Khatam-al-Anbia Hospital, Zahedan, during years 2017 to 2018. The sample size was 100 individuals, who were selected using the convenience sampling method and randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The study began with the start of intubation and lasted for five days. When oral and tracheal culture samples were sent to the laboratory during the first 24 hours after endotracheal intubation, the pre-mixed solution of nystatin, polymyxin B, and neomycin was rubbed to the mouth, lips, gingiva, and cheeks of the intervention group, using syringes and gloves, four times a day. The tracheal and oral secretions were cultured in the intervention and control groups at the beginning and the end of the study. Data analysis was carried out using the SPSS version 21 software. Independent t test and paired t test were used to compare the quantitative variables, and qualitative variables were compared using the chi-square test and Fisher's exact test. The significance level was considered at 0.05. When the final drop-out occurred, out of 44 remaining patients in the intervention group, the number of negative oral cultures increased from 31 cases (70.5%) in the pretest to 39 (88.6%) in the posttest. A total of 25 negative oral cultures were recorded in the control group in both the pretest and posttest stages. Also, the number of negative tracheal cultures in the intervention group increased from 38 cases (86.4%), in the first turn, to 44 (100%) cases in the second turn; while in the control group, the number of negative tracheal cultures was recorded as 39 (88.6%) in the first turn and increased to 40 cases (100%) in the second turn. Clinically, reduced colonization rate of invasive bacteria, as the main result of the present study, indicates a decrease in the incidence of inappropriate alterations in oral microbial flora that can subsequently be effective in reducing the incidence of diseases, such as pneumonia.