Speech Pathology and Audiology Commons^™

The Use Of A Myofunctional Device In An Aged Care Population For Oral Care And Swallowing: A Feasibility Study, Hollie-Ann L. Shortland, Gwendalyn Webb, Anne E. Vertigan, Sally Hewat

International Journal of Orofacial Myology and Myofunctional Therapy

Purpose: Poor oral health is a known predictor of aspiration pneumonia in vulnerable populations such as the elderly and chronically ill. This study examined the feasibility of using myofunctional devices during a 5-week intervention for the management of oral care and dysphagia for residents in a residential aged-care facility.

Method: Feasibility was determined through evaluation of study recruitment and retention rates, adherence to intervention, and resident and staff acceptability of the intervention. Thirteen residents, ages 74–99, participated in the intervention and 10 care staff completed feedback on post-intervention questionnaires.

Results: Enrolment and retention rates were 61.9% and 92.3%, respectively. Adherence …

The Impact Of Temporal Resolution On Clinical Decision-Making For Individuals With Dysphagia, Shauna Corinne Murray

Speech and Hearing Sciences ETDs

INTRODUCTION: Dysphagia, or a disordered swallow, affects up to 1 in 25 individuals in the United States. The gold standard for assessing dysphagia is the videofluoroscopic evaluation of swallowing (VFES). This allows the clinician to observe the swallow anatomy in motion via an X-ray movie, which historically was recorded at 30 frames per second. In recent years VFES have been performed at less frames per second due to radiation concern. This project investigates the effect of using lower temporal resolutions on assessment of video-fluoroscopic swallow studies.

METHODS: In this investigation, 30 swallow studies, all acquired at 30 frames per second, …

A New Surgical Approach For O-C2 Fusion, Solving The Problem Of Dysphagia., M. Kathryn Mcclure

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The fusion of the second cervical vertebrae to the occipital bone (O-C2 fusion) for head stabilization can result in postoperative dysphagia and dyspnea, negatively impacting the patient’s quality of life. Currently, the O-C2 angle is used for head placement, which may not place the head neutrally. We hypothesize that aligning the external auditory meatus with midline of the C2 will reduce oropharyngeal stenosis, reducing dysphagia. One male patient with poor swallow quality of life who required a revision of a previous O-C2 surgery was evaluated via videofluoroscopy and completed the standard swallow quality of life questionnaire (SWAL-QOL) before and after …