Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Jul-Aug;75(4):556-64.
doi: 10.1016/S1808-8694(15)30496-1.

Swallowing and quality of life after total laryngectomy and pharyngolaryngectomy

Débora dos Santos Queija  1 , Juliana Godoy Portas, Rogério Aparecido Dedivitis, Carlos Neutzling Lehn, Ana Paula Brandão Barros
Affiliations

Swallowing and quality of life after total laryngectomy and pharyngolaryngectomy

Débora dos Santos Queija et al. Braz J Otorhinolaryngol. 2009 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Dysphagia can be a consequence of total laryngectomy even in the absence of symptoms and it could indeed directly or indirectly compromise quality of life.

Aim: To evaluate the characteristics of swallowing after total laryngectomy and pharyngolaryngectomy with pharyngeal T closure, correlating them with the Quality of Life in Swallowing Disorders questionnaire.

Methods: A prospective evaluation was performed in 28 patients; fifteen undergoing total laryngectomy and thirteen undergoing total pharyngolaryngectomy. Swallowing was evaluated through videofluoroscopy regarding the preparatory, oral and pharyngeal phases of swallowing, and the quality of life related to swallowing questionnaire was employed to measure quality of life.

Results: Anatomical and functional changes were observed under videofluoroscopic evaluation. Dysphagia was diagnosed in 18 patients (64.3%), being mild in 66.6% and moderate/severe in 33.3%. The questionnaire indicated good quality of life in almost all scales. Complaints of dysphagia were associated to the burden (p=0.036) and mental health scale (p=0.031). The questionnaire indicated impact on the mental health scale for patients with severe dysphagia (p=0.012).

Conclusions: High incidence of dysphagia was observed in some quality of life assessments, especially of mild degree.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. List MA, Ritter-Sterr CA, Lansky SB. A performance status scale for head and neck cancer patients. Cancer. 1990;66:654–659. - PubMed
    1. Qureshi SS, Chaturvedi P, Pai PS, Chaukar DA, Deshpande MS, Pathak KA. A prospective study of pharyngocutaneous fistulas following total laryngectomy. J Cancer Res Ther. 2005;1(1):51–56. - PubMed
    1. Dedivitis RA, Ribeiro KC, Castro MA, Nascimento PC. Pharyngocutaneous fistula following total laryngectomy. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2007;27(1):2–5. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Balfe DM, Koehler RE, Setzen M, Weyman PJ, Baron RL, Ogura JH. Barium Examination of the Esopahgus after Total laryngectomy. Radiology. 1982;143(2):501–508. - PubMed
    1. Nayar RC, Sharma VP, Arora MML. A study of pharynx after laryngectomy. J Laryngol Otol. 1984;98:807–810. - PubMed