2.2. Oral Examinations
denture, TmQHI
DENTAL CARIES, PLAQUE
Prior to the clinical study, the dental examiners (I.S., B.B., and K.A.) were calibrated by theoretical and practical training. The calibration was performed on six inpatients in a setting comparable to that of the study. Inter-examiner reproducibility was assessed using kappa statistics (k): 0.7 for K.A. vs. B.B. and I.S. vs. K.A. and 0.9 for B.B. vs. I.S.The first oral examination (baseline; T0) was performed shortly after inpatient admission to the hospital. The examination was conducted by a dentist and an assistant for documentation. The inpatients were examined while sitting or lying on the hospital bed. Complete dental status was assessed using an illuminated mirror (DenLite; Miltex Inc., York, PA, USA) and a standard probe after drying the teeth with cotton rolls. Dental caries was diagnosed according to the WHO standard [The second (T1a) and third (T1b) assessment was performed in one session shortly before the inpatients’ dismissal from the hospital. The mean time between T0 and T1a was 12.4 ± 3.6 days. At T1a, TmQHI and DHI were recorded. The inpatients were examined for the presence of dental and denture plaque. Subsequently, the inpatient performed oral health care autonomously while the examiner exclusively observed the inpatient. No interventions or assistance were given. Afterwards, at T1b, the plaque parameters TmQHI and DHI were recorded again.