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We use the NS bullets that we also use to clean out our Ballards after suctioning. Typically we put just a tiny amount in the mouth to loosen the secretions and then use the nasal aspirator to suction it out. If we have a baby who is particularly gooey in the mouth, we will use the suction cathters (still using the NS bullets) to get more in the back of the mouth.
Yuck to normal saline!! I wouldn't like the salt water in my mouth either.... I miss VAP guard We get an order for Biotene. This comes up from pharmacy, 1 per patient, its on oral gel that we swab the mouth with on a cotton tipped applicator. It's an iterim solution until we find something comperable to VAP guard. Some people in our unit will use breast milk as well applied in the same fashion.
Thanks for the input! -- We've just started using Biotene.... so far I'm not a fan. Many of us seem to find it doesn't help prevent the lip goo the way VAP guard did and it sometimes even seems to turn into a thick gel glob in their mouth an hour or so after application. Seems like the VAP guard just dissolved or was absorbed. Any other experiences with this product..... good or bad?
spacey
77 Posts
Since the disappearance of VAP-guard ...... what are other units using for oral care?
It would be great to make a survey -- we are sort of not doing anything but we are considering:
(a) Normal Saline
(b) Sterile Water
© Breast Milk -- for those babies whose moms are pumping.
None of the products being used in PICU have been tested on neonates -- so we have ruled those out. Thoughts? ......