Pneumonia, an infection of the lungs, is one of the most common and deadly infections people develop in the hospital. Around 50,000 patients contract pneumonia in Australian hospitals every year. Around 1,900 of them die from it.

It’s rarely monitored and rarely reported. And to date, few studies have looked at how it can be prevented.

But our new trial, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, shows a surprisingly simple action can make a major difference: brushing patients’ teeth.