Investigators examined the subject of whether oral care using chlorhexidine gluconate for patients undergoing MV lowered
pulmonary infection rates in a systematic review and meta-analysis of 16 randomized clinical trials that included 3,630
patients. Findings indicated that cardiac surgery patients who were randomized to oral care using chlorhexidine experienced
fewer lower respiratory tract infections than patients randomized to oral care using a placebo, but that pneumonia rates were
not significantly different between noncardiac surgery patients in either group. No significant differences in mortality or
duration of MV were reported (Klompas et al., 2014)