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Dysphagia research

Everything we have read on dysphagia. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

715 PAPERS · PAGE 12 OF 15 · NEWEST FIRST

• SLPCohort2025Relation between risk of dysphagia and oral intake level in cancer patients.CoDASHospitalized cancer patients who reported more swallowing trouble on a self-assessment score also had lower levels of oral intake. The tool flagged risk in 30% of patients, and older adults were more likely to be at risk than younger ones.
• SLPQualitative2025Oesophageal screening in videofluoroscopic swallow studies: Perspectives from the multidisciplinary dysphagia team to refine the clinical pathway.International journal of language & communication disordersDysphagia teams valued oesophageal screening in VFSS but found it limited by positioning, unclear normal transit, inefficient gastroenterology referral pathways, and variable treatment knowledge. They wanted patient symptoms, preferences and agreed team roles to drive decisions.
• SLPOther2025Viscosity study of maternal and formula milks according to the assessment proposed by the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative Model: a comparison with Rheological Assessment.CoDASAdding barium or thickener to infant milk changes its viscosity unpredictably, often making it thicker than intended. Clinicians must measure the final mixture's flow with the IDDSI syringe test rather than relying on label categories or standard recipes.
• OTSLPCohort2025Feeding difficulties in typical children, sociodemographic factors, and family perception.CoDASChildren aged 2 to 3 years, those born preterm, and those sensitive to noise, smell, or touch had significantly higher odds of feeding difficulties. Screen use during meals was common but not linked to these difficulties. Parents often allowed screens despite believing them harmful, finding they helped children eat.
• SLPOther2025Self-perception and clinical presentation of eating and swallowing difficulties within elderly care.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir KommunikasieafwykingsMany residents reported swallowing concerns, especially extra effort for pills and food sticking in the throat, but most clinical swallow scores showed no established aspiration or dysphagia risk. Ask about self-reported symptoms and do not dismiss them as normal ageing.
• SLPCohort2025Prevalence of feeding difficulties in children aged six months to six years who were born prematurely.CoDASFeeding difficulties affected 15 of 129 preterm children. Small-for-gestational-age birth was linked to higher risk. Surprisingly, gestational diabetes and phototherapy use were associated with fewer difficulties, though the authors caution these links may be incidental or confounded by other factors.
• SLPCase-Control2025Tongue pressure and self-assessment of swallowing after total laryngectomy.CoDASLaryngectomy patients had higher tongue dorsum pressure than controls, but no difference in tongue tip pressure. Tongue pressure did not correlate with self-reported swallowing symptoms. Patients most commonly reported needing liquids to help food go down and difficulty with dry foods.
• SLPCohort2025Characterization of swallowing in older adults with dementia.CoDASSwallowing signs were more frequent at higher dementia stages: mild dementia had more solid residue than neurotypical adults, and severe dementia had liquid spillage, oral residue, longer liquid transit, cough with solids, abnormal neck sounds, and oxygen saturation drops with liquid.
• SLPCohort2025The swallow, a target to follow the restauration of consciousness in acquired brain injury.Journal of rehabilitation medicineSwallowing ability tracked closely with levels of consciousness in ten patients with acquired brain injury. Better oral and pharyngeal function matched higher consciousness scores. This suggests swallowing status may help track recovery, though the small sample limits certainty.
• SLPQualitative2025Translating Technology Into Speech-Language Pathology Practice: Qualitative Interviews Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation as a Case Study.International journal of language & communication disordersSpeech therapists interviewed about brain stimulation saw it as a possible future tool, but not ready for Monday. They wanted better evidence, training, and clearer fit with their role, and worried about cost, time, fear, and clients' access.
• SLPOther2025Effects of Food Type on Pharyngeal Residue, Penetration, and Aspiration: A Prospective Study of 50 Dysphagic Adults.Folia phoniatrica et logopaedica : official organ of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics (IALP)In dysphagic adults undergoing FEES, saltine crackers left more residue in the oropharynx than other foods. Shortbread cookies with pudding left more residue in the hypopharynx and required fewer chews, though they were involved in most of the rare penetration events.
• SLPCohort2025Orofacial myofunctional signs and symptoms in adults with sleep breathing disorder: is there a correlation?CoDASIn 15 adults with sleep breathing disorders, clinical signs of chewing dysfunction correlated moderately but negatively with patient-reported symptoms. This means patients with more observable chewing issues often reported fewer symptoms, highlighting a lack of self-awareness regarding oral motor deficits.
• SLPSurvey2025Solid Medication Intake in Hospitalised Patients With Dysphagia: A Challenge for Speech and Language Pathologists?International journal of language & communication disordersMost surveyed speech-language pathologists assess solid medications during dysphagia evaluations, but methods vary widely: many use patients' own medications in clinical exams and placebos in instrumental exams, and many recommend crushing or pausing medications without standardised guidance.
• PTSLPSurvey2025Survey of feeding issues experienced by patients with spinal muscular atrophy type 2 in Japan.Journal of physical therapy scienceJapanese patients with SMA type 2 reported choking episodes most often at age 20 or older. In that group, 90.0% had choking episodes, compared with 53.8% and 56.3% in younger groups. Meal times were also longest.
• SLPQualitative2025Between Necessity and Feasibility: A Qualitative Study on How Clinicians Navigate Bedside Voice Assessment.Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice FoundationSLPs said acute care prioritizes swallowing over voice, so bedside voice assessment is often delayed. They rely on listening, patient reports, phone recordings and voice tasks, with little standardized protocol, despite patient concern about voice.
• SLPQualitative2025Speech and Language Therapy Weekend Service in Inpatient Rehabilitation: A Qualitative Study Exploring Perspectives of People With Stroke.International journal of language & communication disordersSix people with stroke, none of whom had received weekend speech therapy, said weekends were for rest, visitors and processing the week. They wanted weekday therapy to be meaningful and varied, and worried unfamiliar weekend staff would break continuity. They did not ask for weekend education.
• SLPCohort2025Outcomes of an oral motor and swallowing rehabilitation program in patients with congenital myopathies.CoDASA four-week oral motor and swallowing program improved swallowing safety and oral function in adults with congenital myopathies. Gains persisted at three months without further improvement, but the small, uncontrolled study cannot confirm the therapy caused the change.
• PTOTSLPCohort2025Plea for routine endoscopic tracheostomy tube adjustment.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesRoutine endoscopy found two-thirds of tracheostomy tubes in neurorehab patients were malpositioned, causing visible tracheal injury in 19%. No patient factors predicted misplacement. Check tube position endoscopically upon admission or at first change.
• SLPOther2025Translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the Brazilian version of the Boston Residue and Clearance Scale (BR-BRACS).CoDASThe Boston Residue and Clearance Scale is now available in Brazilian Portuguese with validated images for FEES. Judges agreed almost perfectly on the selected images, though static views of the postcricoid region remained difficult to classify.
• OTSLPOther2025Explore the Overall Benefit Index and its correlation with item difficulty among dysphagia-related syndromes in the ICF framework.European journal of physical and rehabilitation medicineComputer modeling of 150 patients identified participation in ceremonies and hobbies as having the highest potential to improve overall function, despite being difficult to address. This suggests targeting meaningful social goals may yield greater functional gains than easier, lower-impact tasks.
• SLPCohort2025Swallowing ability, nutritional status, and functioning in adults with advanced cancer excluding head, neck, and upper gastrointestinal tract: a cross-sectional study in an outpatient palliative care setting.CoDASIn adults with advanced cancer outside the head, neck and upper digestive tract, mild swallowing changes went with worse daily function and poorer nutrition. Most still ate and drank by mouth.
• SLPCohort2025Feeding and Swallowing Disorder in Adults With Intellectual Disabilities: Associated Factors.Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARIDIn one residential intellectual disability service, 54% were classified with feeding and swallowing disorder. Increasing mealtime support needs, coughing, cramming food, and severe-profound intellectual disability were associated with FSD.
• SLPOther2025Effectiveness and cost savings of employing speech therapists in a home artificial nutrition unit.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesIn 149 patients in a home artificial nutrition service, the unit recorded annual savings of €30,278.67 after personalized prescriptions from a speech therapist. The study had no control group.
• SLPRCT2026Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Over the Vagus Nerve Promotes Poststroke Dysphagia Recovery: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Clinical Trial.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationAdding transcranial direct current stimulation to the vagus nerve to routine swallowing rehab improved swallowing scores more than sham stimulation. The extra stimulation group had less severe dysphagia and better functional communication after four weeks. This suggests targeting the peripheral nerve may help poststroke recovery.
• SLPRCT2025Pharyngeal electrical stimulation to treat dysphagia in acute stroke: learnings from cases in the PhEED clinical trial.Journal of rehabilitation medicineThe trial stopped early with only 17 patients, so it cannot compare treatment to sham. In the 15 who received pharyngeal electrical stimulation, swallowing severity improved, but the study cannot rule out natural recovery after stroke.
• PTOTSLPCohort2026Overall outcome, functioning, and disability in older adults 3 to 14 years after traumatic brain injury.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitationYears after TBI, many older adults kept the same overall outcome, while some improved and some worsened. Mild and moderate injury often meant better independence, but assistance, mobility aids, swallowing problems, and smell or taste change were still reported.
• PTOTSLPCohort2025A comprehensive evidence-based intervention programme significantly reduces intensive care unit-acquired weakness and improves functional recovery: a retrospective analysis.Journal of rehabilitation medicineA bundled ICU programme combining early rehab, nutrition and psychology was linked to less ICU-acquired weakness (32.5% vs 57.3%), shorter stays and better self-care than standard care. Because all parts were delivered together, no single component can be credited.
• SLPQualitative2026Breastfeeding Journeys: Comparing Mothers' Experiences with Autistic and Neurotypical Infants.Journal of autism and developmental disordersMothers described distinct breastfeeding difficulties with infants later diagnosed with autism, including poor latch, lack of effort, and rigid positioning needs. These issues were absent in their neurotypical children. The study reports themes, not evidence that breastfeeding problems diagnose autism.
• SLPCase Report2025Case Report: fNIRS-guided rehabilitation in refractory post-traumatic dysphagia.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesIn a teenager with severe swallowing problems after traumatic brain injury, changing therapy after a brain-activity scan was followed by removal of feeding tube and tracheostomy by day 77. This is a single case, not proof the scan caused recovery.
• SLPOther2025Establishment of a novel brainstem ischemic dysphagia model: single-cell sequencing reveals the molecular mechanisms underlying mPES intervention.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn rats with brainstem strokes, modified pharyngeal electrical stimulation improved swallowing speed and bolus size. It did not fix anxiety or walking problems. This suggests the treatment targets the throat's sensory nerves, not general motor recovery.
• SLPPilot2025Early Feasibility and Efficacy of a Novel Skill-Based Training Program for Poststroke Dysphagia.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationTwo poststroke patients with dysphagia showed improved swallowing ability, physiology, and self-reported symptoms after a novel skill-based training program using visual biofeedback. No adverse events occurred, but one patient did not finish the eight-session protocol.
• SLPOther2026The Pediatric Screening-Priority Evaluation Dysphagia: Validation of a new tool for screening swallowing disorders in infants and children.Developmental medicine and child neurologyThe PS-PED screening tool accurately identifies dysphagia risk in children using medical records. A score of 5 or less rules out low risk with 98% sensitivity, while a score of 6 or more flags at-risk cases with 95% sensitivity. It does not require child cooperation.
• OTSLPCohort2025Bulbar function in children with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 treated with nusinersen.Developmental medicine and child neurologyBulbar function trajectories varied widely in children with SMA1 treated with nusinersen. Many declined over 2 years, especially in type 1b. Improvement on swallowing scores was mostly driven by normal developmental milestones rather than direct treatment effects.
• PTOTSLPSurvey2025Otolaryngologic Symptom Severity Post SARS-CoV-2 Infection.Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice FoundationFour hundred and seventy post-COVID patients reported that hospitalization was linked to worse breathing and cough symptoms, which often lingered or worsened over a year. Voice and swallowing problems remained mild and below clinical thresholds, regardless of how sick the patient was.
• PTOTSLPOther2025Development of a Screening Intervention for Dysphagia in Hospitalised Geriatric Patients.DysphagiaA new screening protocol for hospitalised older adults combines a four-question survey with a 30ml water test. It was designed for nurses and therapists to complete in five to fifteen minutes. No patient outcomes were measured yet.
• PTOTSLPCohort2025Swallowing Evaluation in Post-COVID-19 Patients with Oropharyngeal Dysphagia.DysphagiaPost-COVID patients who failed swallowing screening early after discharge had high rates of aspiration and silent aspiration. Those screened weeks later had far fewer abnormalities. Higher EAT-10 scores and respiratory rates predicted aspiration risk.
• SLPSurvey2025Feeding Problems Among Typically Developing Children From India Aged 1 to 5: A Cross-sectional Study.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBPNearly one-third of typically developing Indian children aged 1 to 5 showed clinically significant feeding difficulties on parent report. However, most parents did not view these behaviors as problematic. Only 18% considered their child's mealtime behaviors a concern, despite 29% scoring above the clinical threshold.
• SLPSurvey2025Psychometric Properties of Dysphagia Handicap Index Scale for Older Adults with Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in China.DysphagiaThe Chinese swallowing handicap questionnaire produced consistent scores and was rated relevant by experts, so it can help SLPs capture older adults' own physical, functional, and emotional problems with eating and drinking.
• SLPPilot2025Effect of Elevation Training Mask on Swallowing Function in Individuals with Parkinson's Disease.DysphagiaFour weeks of wearing an elevation training mask reduced vallecular residue for solid and semi-solid foods in men with Parkinson's disease. Peak expiratory flow, aspiration scores, and patient-reported swallowing difficulty did not change significantly.
• PTOTSLPPilot2025Motor Imagery Practice to Improve Respiratory and Cough Function.DysphagiaFive weeks of imagining cough or expiratory exercises improved peak cough flow in healthy adults, but did not change expiratory pressure. High adherence suggests this mental practice is feasible, though evidence of effectiveness is preliminary.
• SLPRCT2025Efficacy of Game-Based EMG-Biofeedback Therapy in Post-Stroke Dysphagia: A Randomized Controlled Trial.DysphagiaAdding game-based EMG biofeedback to standard swallowing exercises improved aspiration scores and quality of life more than exercises alone. However, the primary measure of oral intake showed no difference between groups, so the technique did not clearly help patients eat better.
• SLPOther2025Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Preliminary Validation of the Italian Version of the Feeding-Swallowing Impact Survey for both Members of Parental Dyads.DysphagiaThe Italian Feeding-Swallowing Impact Survey reliably measures caregiver burden for both mothers and fathers. It accurately distinguishes parents of children with feeding disorders from those without, using specific cut-off scores. Mothers and fathers report similar levels of impact, despite mothers doing more mealtime work.
• SLPSurvey2025Assessing Public Awareness and Understanding of Dysphagia: A Representative Survey of US Adults.DysphagiaOnly 24.5% said they knew what dysphagia was. When asked what it affects, 45% correctly chose swallowing, and 4% correctly identified all three health impacts.
• SLPOther2025A Machine Learning Pipeline for Automated Bolus Segmentation and Area Measurement in Swallowing Videofluoroscopy Images of an Infant Pig Model.DysphagiaA free machine learning tool measured bolus area in infant pig swallowing videos with 97% less time than manual methods. It achieved strong accuracy but required human review to correct errors caused by bubbles and surgical beads.
• OTSLPPilot2025Modulation of Pharyngoesophageal Motility Characteristics During Concurrent Oral Feeding in Infants: Novel Pilot Observations.DysphagiaThickened formula changed swallowing rhythm and made it less coordinated in 12 high-risk infants, especially with faster-flow nipples. This pilot measured swallowing rhythm, not whether thickening is safer.
• PTOTSLPCase Report2025Dysphagia and Muscle Weakness Caused by Botulinum Toxin Poisoning after Cosmetic Injection: Three Case Reports and Clinical Warnings.DysphagiaThree patients developed severe swallowing and speech difficulties after cosmetic botulinum toxin injections at non-medical facilities. Symptoms included muscle weakness and choking. All three required hospitalization, antitoxin treatment, and swallowing rehabilitation, with significant recovery achieved.
• SLPOther2025Does Reducing Videofluoroscopy Frame Rate Affect DIGEST Grades in Modified Barium Swallow Studies?DysphagiaGraders reached very similar DIGEST safety and efficiency scores when lower-frame-rate versions of the videos were graded. The study did not test real lower-radiation imaging, so it does not support a change in standard practice.
• SLPNarrative Review2025Consciousness Disorders and Swallowing Difficulties.DysphagiaPatients with consciousness disorders almost universally have severe swallowing difficulties. Bedside tools like SWADOC and FOTT allow assessment without patient cooperation, while FEES and VFSS guide clinical decisions on oral intake. Treatment options exist but lack evidence specific to this population.
• SLPSystematic Review2025Assessment of Dysphagia Management Competence among Healthcare Providers: A Scoping Review.DysphagiaNo standardized protocol exists for assessing dysphagia management competence in healthcare providers. Existing tools vary widely in focus and scoring, often relying on self-reports or narrow skill checks without validated reliability, leaving a gap in consistent professional training evaluation.
• OTSLPRCT2025Effect of Oral Neuromuscular Training on Tracheostomy Decannulation and Swallowing Function in Patients with Severe Acquired Brain Injury: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.DysphagiaNo clear difference in time to decannulation when IQoro was added to usual care for tracheostomized patients with severe acquired brain injury. Usual care alone improved swallowing scores more, and one residue measure favoured usual care.