Brushing teeth of ICU patients could mean fewer cases of hospital-acquired pneumonia

Daily brushing should be considered an essential part of hospital care, the study authors say.

Cleaning ICU patients’ pearly whites once a day appears to cut their risk of developing hospital-acquired pneumonia by a third, a US study shows.  

The review of data from 2800 patients found that those with a daily brushing routine also had lower mortality rates, spent fewer days on ventilation and had shorter hospital stays.Â