Oral Hygiene During Cancer Treatment

Oral Hygiene During Cancer Treatment

Many patients who are affected by oral Cancer and receiving treatment for the same often neglect the Oral Hygiene. Moreover the treating Cancer surgeon overlooks the need to educate the patient on the same. This blog highlights the importance of Oral Hygiene and provides a step by step guide on how and when to start maintaining Oral Hygiene .

Oral Hygiene during Oral Cancer treatment is the most important aspect of faster healing after Oral Cancer surgery. It keeps a check on the bacterial count in the mouth which otherwise colonize the raw operated site and delay the healing process. 

Here are some step by step instructions on how to maintain a good and effective oral Hygiene after an Oral Cancer surgery:

1. On the third day after the surgery, when the patient feels comfortable, the operated site should be irrigated gently with a low pressure irrigation system. A simple syringe (without needle) filled with diluted betadine/ chlorhexidine can be used initially for irrigation in the hospital but after initial healing (5 to 7 days later) power-spray unit (Colgate Blast water flosser, Oracura smart plus water flosser) can be used by the patient conveniently at home. The pressure from these spray units reaches all parts of the surgical area for effective cleaning. The patient should receive a demonstration on the use of the same at the hospital before discharge. 
2. Patients are usually apprehensive about resuming the brushing of teeth because of concerns that doing so may harm the operated site. But the plaque, food debris, loaded by bacteria that accumulates in the mouth every day must be washed out conveniently. Using a soft/ super-soft tooth brush to gently clean the teeth on the opposite side can be a good habit to speed up the healing. Cautiously, in a conscious, cooperative   patient,  brushing must be initiated about 2 weeks after surgery. 
3. Use of Medicated Mouth wash (alcohol free & with or without dilution) prescribed by the Dental Oncologist/ Oncosurgeon must be frequent and done under supervision of the family members. 
4. During the fourth week of healing, a 1:1 dilution of 3% Hydrogen peroxide in water can be added to the oral Hygiene routine. A sponge-tipped applicator may be used to gently clean the skin graft portion of the defect. After the surgical site is cleaned, the other soft tissues of the mouth like the tongue, cheek, hard palate should also be gently cleaned.

Following this procedure systematically, helps in faster healing of the surgical wound inside the mouth. The tissues repair fast and do not have a bad odour. If the patient is young, must be encouraged to perform the procedure independently with assistance of family members.