Oral Microbes in Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia: Practice and Research Implications

Hospital-acquired pneumonia accounts for 25% of all health care-associated infections and is classified as either ventilator-associated or non-ventilator-associated pneumonia. Hospital-acquired pneumonia most frequently results from aspiration of oropharyngeal secretions into the lungs. Although preventive measures for ventilator-associated pneumonia are well established, few preventive measures exist for the nonventilator type.

To (1) explore oral microbes associated with ventilator-associated and non-ventilator-associated pneumonia in acutely ill, adult hospitalized patients, and (2) provide evidence-based recommendations for measures to prevent pneumonia in hospitalized patients.

A literature search was conducted using CINAHL, Academic Search Premier, Medline, and the Cochrane Library.

Ten studies were found that identified common oral microbes in ventilator-associated and non-ventilator-associated pneumonia, including Acinetobacter baumannii, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, S aureus, and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Collectively, oral colonization with E coli, P aeruginosa, methicillin-resistant S aureus, and S aureus increased the risk of nonventilator pneumonia. Findings also suggested microaspiration of colonized oral microbes into the lungs. Non-ventilator-associated pneumonia had similar colonization rates of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, whereas ventilator-associated pneumonia had greater colonization with gram-negative bacteria. The literature did not indicate a standard of oral care effective in all patient populations.

Oral care is an effective intervention to prevent hospital-acquired pneumonia by reducing pathogenic oral microbial colonization. The impact of different methods and timing of oral care on oral microbes should be further explored, particularly in patients not receiving mechanical ventilation.

Findings reaffirm the importance of consistent oral care in hospitalized patients. In addition, practices should be different in patients receiving mechanical ventilation versus patients not receiving ventilation. Results may also provide knowledge to inform future preventive measures for pneumonia, particularly for nonventilator pneumonia.