A Survey of Speech-Language Pathologists' Experience With Clinical Cough Assessment.
Michela Jean Mir, Karen Wheeler Hegland
PMID 35546793WHAT IT FOUND
Most clinicians assess cough but received little formal training.
They rely on subjective judgment, with few using objective tools like peak flow meters. High interest in training exists, but current practice may lack reliability without standardized education on interpreting cough strength and presence.
Key findings
0184.6% of participants clinically evaluate cough, yet only 19.7% of clinicians received training in their academic programs.
02Qualitative perceptual judgment is the most common assessment method, with only 6.8% using peak flow meters and 14.1% reporting competence with quantitative results.
0397.8% of participants expressed interest in formal cough assessment training, preferring short online formats.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used descriptive statistics only, so no conclusions can be drawn about relationships between variables or the effectiveness of any training. Recruitment occurred via social media and dysphagia platforms, likely biasing the sample toward clinicians already interested in cough and swallowing issues. Response rates were low relative to the number of eligible participants, and the sample was heavily skewed toward US-based clinicians (85.1%). Participants could skip questions, leading to varying response totals for different items, which complicates direct comparison of percentages. The survey did not capture the depth or quality of previous training, only whether it was received, so it cannot assess if existing training was adequate.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was approved by the University of Florida Institutional Review Board.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that because most clinicians assess cough, they are doing so accurately. The survey reveals a gap between clinical practice and formal training, with high reliance on subjective methods that have shown variable agreement in previous research. Interest in training does not equate to current competence.