Pilot Study of the Sage Guard for Oral Cavity Protection

August 28, 2026 updated by: Wake Forest University Health Sciences

Pilot Feasibility Study to Evaluate the Efficacy, Safety, and Usability of the Sage Guard for Protecting the Vital Structures of the Oral Cavity

During placement of a breathing tube, a soft device will be placed in the mouth to help keep the teeth apart and hold the tongue out of the way. This device is designed to help protect the mouth and throat from injury caused by biting, which can lead to swelling or infection. It may also help keep the breathing tube in place and prevent damage to the tube from being bitten. The study will evaluate how safe the device is and how easy it is for healthcare providers to use in patients receiving care in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

A device will be placed in participants that are intubated in the ICU. The device will remain in place for up to 21 days, removal of the device will coincide with extubation. Surveys will be completed by experienced healthcare providers in the ICU to answer work related questions and provide a baseline for oral trauma in the ICU while intubated. Bedside nurses will be asked to answer questions about their experience with the device during participant use to understand ease of usability and integration into the workflow.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

40

Phase

  • 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 Contact

Study Contact Backup

  • Name: Amir Taha, DDS

Study Locations

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Intubated ICU patients on mechanical ventilation
  • 2 sets of opposing teeth that occlude on both left and right sides
  • Attending physician requested a dental evaluation as part of the patient's care

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Active oral infection or trauma preventing safe device placement
  • Known allergy to thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU)
  • Severe facial or jaw trauma incompatible with device placement
  • Mixed dentition, primary dentition, and edentulous patients

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: Prevention
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Sage Guard Intervention
Participants will wear the Sage Guard device during the study procedure to evaluate its feasibility, safety, usability, and effectiveness in protecting vital structures of the oral cavity.
Device: Sage Guard oral protection device
The study device is a single-use mouth device made of a soft plastic material (thermoplastic polyurethane). It has side bite blocks that help keep the teeth apart, a center support that helps hold the breathing tube in place, and tongue guards that help protect the tongue from injury. The device is designed for use in patients with an endotracheal (breathing) tube to help prevent injury to the mouth and tongue caused by biting and to help keep the breathing tube stable.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of oral trauma in intubated patients
Time Frame: Daily assessment up to Day 21
The occurrence of oral injuries, including injury to the tongue, lips, cheeks, gums, or other oral tissues, during the period of endotracheal intubation. The incidence of oral trauma will be compared between patients managed with the study device and those receiving standard care.
Daily assessment up to Day 21
Incidence of endotracheal tube displacement in intubated patients
Time Frame: Daily assessment up to Day 21
The occurrence of endotracheal tube movement from its intended position during the period of intubation. The incidence of tube displacement will be compared between patients managed with the study device and those receiving standard care.
Daily assessment up to Day 21
Incidence of endotracheal tube damage in intubated patients
Time Frame: Daily assessment up to Day 21
The occurrence of endotracheal tube damage during the period of intubation. The incidence of tube damage will be compared between patients managed with the study device and those receiving standard care.
Daily assessment up to Day 21

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Frequency of movement of study device position during endotracheal intubation
Time Frame: Daily assessment up to Day 21
The occurrence of movement of the study device from its intended position during the period of endotracheal intubation. The frequency of device displacement events will be recorded.
Daily assessment up to Day 21
Likert Scale Scores of study device use by bedside nursing staff
Time Frame: Daily assessment up to Day 21
Feasibility will be assessed by nursing staff using a standardized questionnaire evaluating ease of device placement, maintenance, removal, and integration into routine patient care workflow. A Likert scale is scored by assigning numbers to each answer choice. You then add up or average these numbers to turn soft feelings into hard data. A standard five-point scale gives a score of 1 to 5 for each question - Higher totals mean more of that trait or feeling.
Daily assessment up to Day 21

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Wake Forest University Health Sciences

Collaborators

Obsolete Engineering Co.

Investigators

  • Study Chair: Amir Taha, DDS, Obsolete Engineering Co.
  • Principal Investigator: Jesus A. Valdez, DDS, Wake Forest University Health Sciences

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 (Estimated)

September 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

January 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 28, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 28, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

September 8, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

September 8, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 28, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB00149615

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data (IPD) will not be shared. Due to the small sample size in this pilot feasibility study, sharing de-identified participant-level data could increase the risk of participant re-identification and compromise confidentiality.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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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