WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Dyah Untari* and Nadia Oktiffany Putri

ABSTRACT

Background: The increase of stroke prevalence is still a big challenge for the world every year. Stroke often requires a prolonged treatment because most stroke patients have decreased consciousness. Hospitalized patients who experience decreased consciousness are at risk of nosocomial pneumonia originating from aspiration pneumonia. Prevention of aspiration pneumonia can be done with adequate oral care. Generally, oral care is performed using chemical materials, including 0.2% chlorhexidine, 0.12% chlorhexidine, 0.9% NaCl, and alcohol-free mouthwash. Oral care with natural ingredients is still rarely used in hospitals. Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of oral care with honey and 0.2% chlorhexidine to the risk of aspiration pneumonia in stroke patients with decreased consciousness. Methods: This study was a quantitative study with a quasi-experimental method. The study design used a pre and post-test with control group. The dependent t-test and independent t-test was used for data analysis. Results: The results showed that there was a significant difference between the effectiveness of oral care using honey and 0.2% chlorhexidine on the risk of aspiration pneumonia in stroke patients with decreased consciousness (p-value. (0.029) < 0.05). Conclusions: In conclusion, the findings highlight that oral care with honey has more significant effect in reducing the risk of aspiration pneumonia in stroke patients with decreased consciousness. The use of honey as an oral care doesn’t only have benefits as an anti-microbial, but also makes the color of the gums and teeth become brighter in stroke patients with decreased consciousness.

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