Investigating the Effect of Oral Care Frequency on Oral Mucosal Tissue Integrity in Critically Ill Patients. (oral care)

June 3, 2026 updated by: berat fidan, Balikesir University
This study aims to investigate the effect of oral care frequency on oral mucosal tissue integrity in intensive care patients.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Research data will be collected from the Adult Intensive Care Units of Balıkesir University Health Practice and Research Hospital. Patients meeting the inclusion criteria will be informed about the research, and those who volunteer to participate, or their relatives, will provide written/verbal consent using an Informed Consent Form. The assignment of patients to different groups will be determined using simple randomization on the randomizer.org website. Patients admitted to the intensive care unit at the start of the study will be assigned to control and intervention groups according to the numbers on the randomizer.org website. Oral care swabs will be prepared for each patient in both the control and intervention groups, with four swabs per patient, moistened with a 0.25% chlorhexidine gluconate solution. If the patient is conscious, they will be placed in a comfortable position; if unconscious, their head will be positioned sideways towards the person performing the procedure. Oral care will be performed on the patient, covering all teeth, inner cheeks, under the tongue, gums, and other soft tissues. After the patient's oral care procedure is complete, the patient will be returned to their original position, and the procedure will be finished. Each care session will last at least 2 minutes. Patients in the control group will receive oral care four times a day, every six hours. Patients in the intervention group will receive oral care at a frequency determined individually based on their scores on the intensive care oral care frequency assessment scale. Patients in both groups will be evaluated at the beginning and throughout the intervention using the oral mucosa assessment scale to assess the effect of the oral care on the oral mucosa. The intervention is planned to continue for five days, and the results will be recorded.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
50

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Altıeylül
      • Balıkesir, Altıeylül, Turkey (Türkiye), 10100
        • Balıkesir Üniversitesi Sağlık Uygulama ve Araştırma Hastanesi

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • •Patients admitted to the adult intensive care unit:

    • Patients aged 18 and over
    • Patients who agreed to participate in the study (voluntary informed consent obtained from the patient or their relatives)
    • Patients who are not allergic to the contents of the oral care solution to be used were included in the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • • Patients under 18 years of age

    • Patients with oral bleeding
    • Patients with thrombocytopenia
    • Patients who have undergone oral surgery
    • Patients who did not consent to the study (either from the patient themselves or a relative) were not included in the study.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Individualized oral care frequency group
Oral care is provided according to the Intensive Care Oral Care Frequency Assessment Scale score during the follow-up period.
Other: Oral care based on assessment scale
Oral care frequency is determined according to the Intensive Care Oral Care Frequency Assessment Scale.
Active Comparator: Routine oral care group
Oral care is provided according to routine unit practice, such as 4 times daily, during the follow-up period.
Other: Routine oral care
Oral care is provided according to standard intensive care unit routine practice.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Intensive Care Unit Oral Care Frequency Assessment Scale (Day 1 to Day 5)
Time Frame: For 5 days after being admitted to intensive care
9 points 12*1 10-19 points 3*1 20-29 points 4*1 30 and above 6*1
For 5 days after being admitted to intensive care

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Oral mucosa assessment scale
Time Frame: 9:00 AM every day for 5 days
The scale evaluates five sections of the mouth and its parts (lips, oral mucosa, gingiva, tongue, teeth, and saliva). Each question is scored from 1 to 4. The lowest possible score is "5" and the highest is "20". A score of 0-5 indicates normal oral mucosal health, 6-20 indicates mild dysfunction, 11-15 indicates moderate dysfunction, and 16-20 indicates severe dysfunction. A low score indicates good oral mucosal health, while a high score indicates poor oral mucosal health.
9:00 AM every day for 5 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Balikesir University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: türkan çalışkan, Balıkesir Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 20, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 20, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
February 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
April 13, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 3, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 9, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 9, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 3, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • E.521870

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

All individual participant data collected, all individual participant data that forms the basis of the results in a publication.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

01/05/2026- 01/12/2027

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

It is accessible to everyone. They have access to data analysis and work plans.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • CSR

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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