Sensory stimulation treatments for oropharyngeal dysphagia

Abstract

One of the main causes of dysphagia in older and neurological patients is the impairment on oropharyngeal sensory function. Over the last decade, a better understanding of how sensory stimuli are perceived in the human oropharynx and processed in the CNS has led to several new therapeutic strategies based on the sensory stimulation of the oropharynx in the treatment of dysphagia. The goal of these new strategies is not only to prevent safety impairments during deglutition but to improve the oropharyngeal swallow response to move from compensation to recovery of the swallowing function. This chapter will cover the neurophysiological, anatomical and molecular bases for these sensory stimulation treatments and provide an updated list of therapies that have been validated on patients with dysphagia, including pharmaceutical, physical and electrical stimulation of the oropharynx.