Perceived changes to swallowing in people with Parkinson's disease

Noble, Emma, Jones, Diana and Miller, Nick (2015) Perceived changes to swallowing in people with Parkinson's disease. International Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, 22 (12). pp. 573-581. ISSN 1741-1645

	Text (Article) Patient_Reported_Changes_to_Swallowing_accepted.docx - Accepted Version Download (54kB)
Preview	Text (Article) Patient_Reported_Changes_to_Swallowing_accepted.pdf - Accepted Version Download (531kB) | Preview

Abstract

Aims:
To describe the relationship between perceived swallowing difficulties in people with Parkinson's disease with disease-specific measures, carers' perceptions of swallowing problems and control participant responses.

Method:
In total, 119 people with Parkinson's disease, their carers and matched controls answered a specifically prepared functional swallowing changes questionnaire. People with Parkinson's completed a water-swallowing test. Motor status, cognition and mood were also assessed.

Results:
People with Parkinson's disease scored poorer than controls (p < 0.001) on the questionnaire. Those reporting swallowing problems scored poorer than those who did not (p < 0.01). However, of 74 people with Parkinson's who perceived no swallowing problem, 32 fell below the 50th percentile on the water-swallowing test, while 41 fell below cut-off scores on the questionnaire. There was a weak correlation between drinking speeds and questionnaire totals. Carers' evaluations correlated with their partners' (r = 0.796) but they perceived changes as less severe (p < 0.03).

Conclusions:
Despite reduced swallowing efficiency, some people with Parkinson's can successfully compensate. A sizeable proportion, however, remain unaware of swallowing problems when asked simply ‘Do you have a problem?’, but indicate difficulties with more specific questions. The present questionnaire provides a guide for gaining such insights for diagnosis, education and outcomes.

Actions (login required)

View Item

Downloads