Relationship Between Tongue Pressure and Pharyngeal Function Assessed Using High-Resolution Manometry in Older Dysphagia Patients with Sarcopenia: A Pilot Study

AbstractTongue pressure is often used to evaluate swallowing muscle strength in dysphagia patients with sarcopenia. However, the amount of tongue pressure that reflects pharyngeal swallowing function is unclear. The aims of this descriptive study were (1) to assess the association between tongue pressure and swallowing function using high-resolution manometry (HRM), (2) to evaluate whether manometric parameters were related to maximum tongue pressure (MTP) and other sarcopenia-related factors, and (3) to evaluate the manometric characteristics of pharyngeal swallowing in sarcopenic dysphagia. Sixteen patients with dysphagia (13 men; mean age 85.0  ± 6.6) who were diagnosed with sarcopenia and sixteen healthy subjects (10 men; mean age 33.6 ± 7.2) were included. Evaluation of HRM parameters including velopharyngeal contractile integral (VPCI), mesohypopharyngeal contractile integral (MHPCI), upper esophageal sphincter (UES) relaxati on duration, and UES nadir pressure was performed. HRM parameters of patients were compared with MTP, sarcopenia factors, and manometric parameters of healthy subjects. The VPCI showed no statistically significant differences between patient and healthy groups. In the patient group, the MHPCI was si gnificantly lower (126.1 ± 76.6 vs 193.2 ± 34.1 mmHg cm s;p = 0.003), UES nadir pressure was significantly higher (10.5 ± 27.5 vs − 11.2 ± 6.7 mmHg;p <  0.001), and UES relaxation duration (318.0 ± 15...
Source: Dysphagia - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Source Type: research