The Effect of Oral Care With Propolis in COPD Patients

The study was conducted in intensive care units and included patients diagnosed with COPD. The study was conducted with a total of 60 COPD patients, 30 in the intervention group and 30 in the control group. Individuals in the intervention group were given an oral care protocol containing propolis for 15 days, in addition to the clinic's standard oral care protocol. The control group continued to receive standard oral care. Oral mucosa was assessed on days 1, 7 and 15 using the World Health Organization (WHO) Oral Mucositis Scoring Index and the Oral Assessment Guide (Oral Mucosa Score, OMS).

Inclusion criteria

• Aged 18 years or older,
• diagnosed with COPD,
• no oral mucositis at the start of the study,
• no known allergy to bees or bee products,
• able to speak and understand Turkish and communicate effectively,
• conscious,
• without any psychiatric illness,
• without any mental or physical disability that would prevent them from answering questions,
• individuals who volunteered to participate in the study were included in the study.

Exclusion criteria

• individuals with a cancer diagnosis,
• individuals receiving immunosuppressive therapy,
• individuals receiving mechanical ventilation support,
• individuals with altered consciousness or acute confusion,
• individuals who did not volunteer to participate in the study were excluded from the research.