RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Nosocomial pneumonia ranks among the top 5 diseases that lead to additional financial costs due to hospitalization. This study aimed to evaluate the cost of oral care and its clinical effectiveness in preventing pneumonia in a systematic review. METHODS: The search was conducted in the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Sciences, Scopus, CINAHL, LILACS, complemented by gray literature and manual search, between January/2021 and August/2022. Two independent reviewers extracted data from the selected articles, individually analyzing each study's quality using the BMJ Drummond checklist. The data were tabulated by clinical or economic type. RESULTS: A total of 3,130 articles were identified; the eligibility criteria were verified, and 12 articles were selected for qualitative analysis. Only 2 achieved satisfactory quality assessment for economic analysis studies. There was heterogeneity between clinical and economic data. Eleven of the 12 studies reported a decrease in the incidence of nosocomial pneumonia following the application of oral care practices. Most authors reported a reduction in the estimate of individual costs, followed by a decrease in the need for antibiotic therapy. The costs of oral care were very low compared to other costs. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the low level of evidence in the literature, heterogeneity and poor quality of the selected studies, most studies concluded that oral care seemed to lead to reduced costs in hospital expenses for treating pneumonia.