Abstract
The department of oral rehabilitation in Showa University dental hospital was established in 2004 to make a significant contribution to the rehabilitation and treatment of patients with oral dysfunction including dysphagia, speech disorders and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.
Out of 456 first-visit outpatients who visited our department in 2007, 233 patients had dysphagia, including 59 head and neck cancer patients. Some of these head and neck cancer patients had intractable dysphagia.
In my presentation, I have presented five head and neck cancer patients with dysphagia who were told in other clinics that it would be impossible or extremely difficult to eat orally. These patients were hospitalized in our department for dysphagia treatment. Evaluation, treatment procedures, and outcomes of these patients were presented.
I have also pointed out problems concerning dysphagia rehabilitation, and discussed how we manage those problems in our department.
During the diagnostic process, we detect and record swallowing sounds during VF and VE examination. The sound information is considered as a reference when we use cervical auscultation in our clinical examinations.
In order to train patients efficiently during treatment, we apply quantitative measures for evaluating functions. Also, we record the training program onto a videotape so the patients will be able to reproduce the program accurately. As a swallow maneuver, we apply the Showa swallow maneuver, which is a combination of three swallow maneuvers.
Even after recovering from dysphagia, the resistance training should be continued until it is habituated to maintain a high quality diet level. This approach is especially important for the elderly.
