Performance of swallowing function between older people with and without clinical complaints.
Ramon Cipriano Pacheco de Araújo, Cynthia Meira de Almeida Godoy, Lidiane Maria de Brito Macedo Ferreira and 2 others
PMID 39936812WHAT IT FOUND
Older adults with swallowing complaints had more tongue weakness, hoarse voice, throat residue with liquids, and lower oral intake than those without complaints.
Lower intake went with more residue and nutritional risk.
Key findings
01Older adults with swallowing complaints had more reduced tongue strength, shorter maximum phonation time, and roughness than those without complaints.
02FEES showed more posterior oral spillage and pharyngeal residue with thin, mildly thick, and extremely thick liquids, plus more laryngeal penetration with thin liquid and penetration and aspiration with thick liquids only in the complaint group.
03The complaint group had lower oral intake and more severe pharyngeal residue than the no-complaint group, and lower oral intake was associated with greater residue severity and nutritional risk.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The complaint group was identified by other professionals or referrals without a specific dysphagia screening protocol, so complaint status may not be comparable. The sample was a convenience sample from one hospital clinic, and the groups had unequal sizes and different age ranges, so results may not apply to all older adults. The study did not use instrumental tongue strength testing, occupational history, chemical exposure data, or food recall. Some speech-language-hearing measures, such as tongue strength and cough efficiency, were subjective. The design was retrospective and cross-sectional, so it cannot show that complaints caused the swallowing signs or vice versa.
Declared interests
The authors declared no financial support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that swallowing complaints prove these objective signs caused the complaints or that older adults without complaints have safe swallowing. The study was retrospective, convenience-based, and did not use a validated dysphagia screening tool or measure cause.