You searched for "dysphagia"
Spasmodic dysphonia – is greater awareness needed?
Spasmodic dysphonia (SD) is a focal dystonia of the laryngeal musculature. Previously considered to be a rare disorder, it has more recently been suggested that SD is in fact not rare but is frequently misdiagnosed or undiagnosed. This paper would...
Beware the skinny patient…
The adverse health impacts of an excessive BMI are well known. This study highlights one laryngeal pathology for which a low BMI appears to be a significant risk factor. The records of 28 patients treated for arytenoid cartilage dislocation were...
Standardising videofluoroscopy assessment for bottle-fed babies
Swallowing problems in babies may occur for many reasons including complex medical problems, premature birth, and low birth-weight. Dysphagia causes several further morbidities such as poor nutrition and compromised respiration, often raising distress for both infants and their caregivers. Early...
Take a breath between mouthfuls
Pulse oximetry provides a measure of the percentage of oxygen in the blood. The usual range of readings on pulse oximetry is 97-99%. Older people may have lower pulse oximetry readings than younger people, and young women have higher readings...
Patient reported outcomes following total laryngectomy using the Swallowing Outcomes After Laryngectomy (SOAL) questionnaire
Following a total laryngectomy, alterations in the pharyngeal musculature and changes in the pharyngo-oesophageal segment due to reconstruction, results in altered bolus transit. Swallowing dysfunction after total laryngectomy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma can vary from 10%-90%. There...
Is a hemithyroidectomy as effective as a total thyroidectomy for compressive symptoms?
The claim made in the title of this paper, that hemithyroidectomy is equally as successful as total thyroidectomy in alleviating compressive symptoms from goitres, is certainly intriguing. And with the inclusion of 45,539 subjects, it would at first glance seem...
Less pain more gain: impact of prophylactic gabapentin on swallowing outcomes in head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiation treatment
Patients planned for chemoradiation to the head and neck are usually advised to expect some pain and soreness during their treatment and that pain relief will be offered as and when it is required. Uncontrolled pain and mucositis affect oral...
Contemporary UK experience of oropharyngeal transoral laser microsurgery
It is well recognised that the current emergence of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) as a distinct disease entity requires a fresh look at standard treatment modalities that are based on chemoradiotherapy for stage III/IVa OPSCC. The Newcastle experience...
Changes in swallowing function after thyroidectomy
Evaluation of functional impact following thyroidectomy tends to be focused on voice quality. The aim of this study was to document early (seven days postoperatively) and late changes (60 days postop) in swallowing function after thyroidectomy. A preoperative naso-endoscopic evaluation...
Your voice and your personality
Variations of vocal effort are a normal adaptation to difficult communication situations. However, persistence of these abnormal strategies can lead to various functional dysphonias. In this experiment, the authors tested 41 females aged 18-52. The subjects were asked to instruct...
Speech analysis via mobile phone – is there an app for that?
Experienced ENT surgeons will often be able to discern the likelihood of significant laryngeal pathology in a patient referred with dysphonia by the sound of their voice during the initial history-taking phase of a consultation. With the move earlier in...
