Current trends and identified gaps in dysphagia research in Africa: A scoping review.
Skye N Adams, Kim Coutts
PMID 41405072WHAT IT FOUND
Dysphagia research in Africa is sparse, heavily skewed towards South Africa, and focused on clinical practice rather than teaching or prevalence.
Nurses and doctors often lack the knowledge to identify swallowing difficulties, leaving speech-language therapists to manage complex cases with limited multidisciplinary support.
Key findings
01Only 61 peer-reviewed studies on dysphagia were identified across Africa between 2015 and 2024, with 60.7% originating from South Africa.
02Nurses and other healthcare professionals frequently lack the knowledge to identify non-overt signs of dysphagia and often do not understand the role of the speech-language therapist.
03There is a critical gap in research regarding teaching and learning in dysphagia, with only one study identified in the entire review focusing on this area.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The review only included English-language peer-reviewed articles, potentially missing research published in other African languages or in grey literature (e.g., student theses). The majority of included studies were from South Africa, so the findings may not represent the dysphagia landscape in other African countries. The quality of the included studies was variable, with an average QuADS score of 57%, and many studies had small sample sizes. The search was limited to a ten-year window (2015-2024).
Declared interests
The research was supported by the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA), funded by organisations including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Sida, Norad, Oak Foundation, and the Science for Africa Foundation. The authors declared no other conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that the lack of published research means dysphagia is rare or that clinical activity is low in Africa. The review explicitly notes that many studies, particularly grey literature and those in non-English languages, were excluded, and that publication bias against African research likely obscures the true volume of work being done.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →