A piezoresistive sensor for measuring tongue pressure

Abstract

Dysphagia is common after a cerebral vascular accident (or stroke), and it seriously affects the prognosis. Timely diagnosis in clinical, scientific assessment of dysphagia and correct treatment given to patients are essential. This study is aimed to develop a sensor for measuring tongue pressure during swallowing or other times, and to help doctors make a scientific assessment of dysphagia grade. It is a kind of miniaturization of piezoresistive pressure sensor with an outer diameter of 10mm and a thickness of 3mm. A calibration and data acquisition ARM system is designed, which can continuously record tongue pressure in 8 hours. The sensor has a detection range from 0 to 30kPa, and the measurement error can be controlled in 5%.