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. 2016 Sep;175(9):1209-1217.
doi: 10.1007/s00431-016-2760-4. Epub 2016 Aug 20.

Dysphagia in children with repaired oesophageal atresia

Catelijne H Coppens  1 , Lenie van den Engel-Hoek  2 , Horst Scharbatke  3 , Sandra A F de Groot  2 , Jos M T Draaisma  4
Affiliations

Dysphagia in children with repaired oesophageal atresia

Catelijne H Coppens et al. Eur J Pediatr. 2016 Sep.

Abstract

Dysphagia is a common problem in children with repaired oesophageal atresia (OA). Abnormalities in the oropharyngeal and oesophageal phase have hardly been studied. The aims of this study were to assess the prevalence of dysphagia in children with repaired OA and to identify and differentiate oral and pharyngeal dysphagia based on videofluoroscopic swallow study (VFSS) findings in a limited number of children in this cohort. Medical records of 111 patients, born between January 1996 and July 2013 and treated at the Radboudumc Amalia Children's Hospital, were retrospectively reviewed. The prevalence of dysphagia was determined by the objective and modified Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS) in four age groups. The first performed VFSS of 12 children was structurally assessed. The prevalence of dysphagia was 61 of 111 patients (55 %) in age group <1 year. In age group 1-4, 5-11 and 12-18 years, the prevalence of dysphagia decreased from 54 of 106 (51 %) patients to 11 of 64 (17 %) and 5 of 24 (21 %) patients. The 12 VFSS's reviews revealed oral dysphagia in 36 % and pharyngeal dysphagia in 75 %.

Conclusions: This study highlights dysphagia as an important problem in different age groups of children with repaired OA. Furthermore, our study shows the presence of oropharyngeal dysphagia in this population. This study emphasizes the need to standardize the use of objective dysphagia scales, like the modified FOIS, to provide a careful follow-up of children with repaired OA.

What is known: • Prevalence of dysphagia in children with repaired oesophageal atresia varies widely (ranges from 45 to 70 %) in literature. • Oral, pharyngeal and oesophageal dysphagia require different treatment approaches. What is New: • We determined dysphagia based on functional oral intake and provide an overview of change in dysphagia prevalence and severity over time in children with repaired OA. • Our study shows that dysphagia, including oropharyngeal dysphagia, is highly prevalent in young children with repaired OA and improves with time.

Keywords: Dysphagia; Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS); Oesophageal atresia (OA); Oropharyngeal dysphagia; Videofluoroscopic swallow study (VFSS).

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Conflict of interest statement

Compliance with ethical standards Funding This study was not funded. Conflicts of interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. Ethical approval This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors. For this type of study, formal consent is not required. According to the Medical Ethics Committee (CMO) of the district Arnhem/ Nijmegen, no ethical approval was required for this study.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Selection of patients with repaired OA. VFSS videofluoroscopic swallow study
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Severity of dysphagia, expressed in FOIS levels, in four age groups. FOIS Functional Oral Intake Scale, n number of patients per age group
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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