[Cause-oriented prevention of nosocomial pneumonia: the HI-LO EVAC tube].

Abstract

Surgical high-risk patients were studied in a prospective randomized trial regarding nosocomial pneumonia (NP) using a subglottic lavage (SL). A total of 100 patients were investigated, in whom the primary infection was localized in the oropharynx. Independent of the kind of stress ulcer prophylaxis, intermittent subglottic lavage reduces the incidence of NP drastically to 3%, which is however, without statistical significance.