How Do Quantitative Videofluoroscopy Measures Differ Between People With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Age-Matched Healthy Adults?
Pooja Gandhi, Ashley A Waito, Melanie Peladeau-Pigeon and 2 others
PMID 39007704WHAT IT FOUND
People with early ALS showed significantly slower hyoid movement across all liquid thicknesses compared to healthy adults.
They also had more frequent issues with airway closure and multiple swallows per sip, particularly on thinner liquids. These differences were not seen in healthy adults.
Key findings
01Hyoid speed was significantly reduced in people with ALS compared to healthy controls across all five liquid consistencies.
02People with ALS had a significantly higher number of atypical swallowing parameters overall compared to age-matched healthy controls.
03Incomplete laryngeal vestibule closure was seen in at least 25% of people with ALS on all consistencies except extremely thick liquids, whereas it was absent in healthy controls.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample size was small (19 participants per group), which limits the generalizability of the findings. The ALS participants had relatively mild disease severity, so results may not apply to patients with advanced ALS. The study was cross-sectional, so it does not show how these swallowing changes progress over time. No adjustment was made for multiple comparisons, which increases the risk of finding false positive differences. The definition of 'atypical' values used here (outside the 25th-75th percentile) is less extreme than in some other studies, which may make differences appear more common.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. Funding was provided by operating grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to the authors.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume these findings apply to patients with advanced ALS or severe respiratory compromise. The study participants had relatively mild disease, and the authors note that results may not generalize to other stages of the condition.