Effects of Gargling with an Aroma Solution on Xerostomia, Halitosis, and Salivary pH in Hemodialysis Patients – A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Despite developments in renal replacement therapy, therapeutic fluid restriction reportedly induces xerostomia in 28.2~85.5% of hemodialysis patients, which causes serious inconveniences in their daily living and is detrimental to their quality of life. Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of gargling with an aroma solution (A-Solution) on xerostomia, halitosis, and salivary pH in hemodialysis patients. Methods: This study design was a randomized controlled trial. The participants of this study were 56 hemodialysis patients of E General Hospital in Seoul, Korea. They were divided into an experimental group (n=28) treated by gargling with 20 ml of A-Solution for 15 seconds and a control group (n=28) where pateints did not gargle with A-Solution, and data were collected from October 1 to November 15, 2013. The outcome variables were measured in the pretest and at 5, 30, 60, and 120 minutes in the two groups. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS (version 18.0 for Windows). Results: Xerostomia was lower in the experimental group than in the control group at each time point apart from the pretest and differed significantly in the interaction between groups and time points. Salivary pH and halitosis differed significantly between the experimental and control groups, across time points, and in the interaction between group and time point. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that aroma gargling is a useful oral-care intervention for solving oral problems experienced by hemodialysis patients such as xerostomia and halitosis.