Prevalence of Oral Frailty Among ICU Patients Undergoing Oral Endotracheal Intubation

The study, conducted at the First People's Hospital of Lianyungang, found that a significant number of ICU patients undergoing oral endotracheal intubation were at risk of oral frailty. Researchers investigated the level and factors associated with oral frailty among these patients, using a cross-sectional study design. The study's findings suggest that age, marital status, duration of oral endotracheal intubation, and oral health level are influencing factors of oral frailty in ICU patients.

Key Takeaways:

• The study found that 36.73% (83/226) of ICU patients with oral endotracheal intubation were at high risk of oral frailty.
• The Oral Frailty Index-8, the Oral Health Assessment Tool, the Nutritional Risk Screening 2002, and the Frail Scale were used to assess oral frailty among patients.
• Age, marital status, duration of oral endotracheal intubation, and oral health level were identified as influencing factors of oral frailty in ICU patients.
• The study recommends that medical staff pay attention to the level of oral frailty in patients to reduce the risk of oral frailty.
• The study provides a reference for the construction of targeted nursing intervention programs in the future.
• The researchers suggest that in addition to airway management, prevention and control of oral frailty should be prioritized to reduce the risk of oral frailty.

Statistics:

• 226 patients with oral endotracheal intubation in ICU were selected for the study.
• 36.73% (83/226) of patients were at high risk of oral frailty.
• The scores of oral frailty in ICU patients with oral endotracheal intubation were 3.00 (2.00, 4.00).

Sources:

• Frontiers in Medicine, 2025,12.
• doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1650313
• First People's Hospital of Lianyungang
• People's Republic of China
• Critical Care Medicine, First People's Hospital of Lianyungang
• Lei Li, Huaixiang Zhai, and Min Shi are the researchers mentioned in the article.