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. 2022 Mar;166(3):511-514.
doi: 10.1177/01945998211010435. Epub 2021 May 4.

Determining the Impact of Thickened Liquids on Swallowing in Patients Undergoing Irradiation for Oropharynx Cancer

Carly E A Barbon  1   2 , Douglas B Chepeha  3 , Andrew J Hope  4 , Melanie Peladeau-Pigeon  2 , Ashley A Waito  1   2 , Catriona M Steele  1   2
Affiliations

Determining the Impact of Thickened Liquids on Swallowing in Patients Undergoing Irradiation for Oropharynx Cancer

Carly E A Barbon et al. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2022 Mar.

Abstract

The current standard for the treatment of oropharynx cancers is radiation therapy. However, patients are frequently left with dysphagia characterized by penetration-aspiration (impaired safety) and residue (impaired efficiency). Although thickened liquids are commonly used to manage dysphagia, we lack evidence to guide the modification of liquids for clinical benefit in the head and neck cancer population. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of slightly and mildly thick liquids on penetration-aspiration and residue in 12 patients with oropharyngeal cancer who displayed penetration-aspiration on thin liquid within 3 to 6 months after completion of radiotherapy. Significantly fewer instances of penetration-aspiration were seen with slightly and mildly thick liquids as compared with thin (P < .05). No differences were found across stimuli in the frequency of residue. Patients with oropharyngeal cancers who present with post-radiation therapy dysphagia involving penetration-aspiration on thin liquids may benefit from slightly and mildly thick liquids without risk of worse residue.

Keywords: dysphagia; head and neck cancer; texture modification.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosures: Competing interests: Catriona M. Steele has served on Nestlé expert panels for which she has received honoraria and travel expenses. She is a National Institutes of Health–funded principal investigator and a member of the board of directors for the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative.

Sponsorships: None.

Funding source: Funding for this study was provided through a National Institutes of Health grant (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, R01 DC 011020) to Catriona M. Steele.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Pixel-based tracings of residue. (a) Pharyngeal residue. (b) Residue is traced and compared with an anatomic reference scalar (squared length of the C2-4 cervical spine), shown with white dashed lines.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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