Dysphagia limit in children with cerebral palsy aged 4 to 12 years.
Florentine V Schepers, Karen van Hulst, Bea Spek and 2 others
PMID 34418067WHAT IT FOUND
Children with cerebral palsy swallowed far smaller amounts of water at once than typically developing peers.
Even those classified as eating and drinking safely had a median limit of 7mL, compared to 22mL in typical children.
Key findings
01Children with CP had a significantly lower median dysphagia limit (3.0mL) than typically developing children (22.0mL).
02Children in EDACS level I, who eat and drink safely, still had a much lower median dysphagia limit (7.0mL) than typically developing children (22.0mL).
03EDACS level and age together explained 57% of the variance in dysphagia limits among children with CP.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study did not determine the reliability of the Maximum Volume Water Swallow Test in this population. Six children did not fully understand the instruction to swallow at once, though they were included in the analysis. The study was cross-sectional, so it does not show how swallowing capacity changes as children with CP grow older. Children with severe CP (EDACS levels IV and V) were underrepresented in the sample.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that a child in EDACS level I has normal swallowing capacity. They may still have a significantly reduced dysphagia limit compared to typically developing peers, which could affect the safety and efficiency of their feeding.