Effects of Normal Saline Instillation on Lungs
Hagler and Traver22 reported increased colonization of
lower respiratory tract after instillation of saline. These
researchers examined the colonization of bacteria on
endotracheal tubes removed from 10 patients after 48
hours of intubation. The number of bacteria dislodged
into the lower airways as a result of inserting a suction
catheter increased 5-fold with saline instillation as
compared with that without instillation. The results
indicated that the organisms were carried down to the
lower parts of the airway