Analysis of mandibular movement, and oral and pharyngeal pressure during deglutition

Abstract

Swallowing of water was observed continuously from the oral phase to the pharyngeal phase in 8 adult males with no perceived swallowing difficulty, we simultaneously recorded mandibular movements and swallowing pressures in the oral cavity and pharynx during a single swallow and a continuous swallow, and made functional assessments of the swallowing. We found that during a single swallow, the time lag between the oral and laryngeal phases was reduced as the volume increased, and that the middle pharyngeal pressure peaked before the maximum oral pressure. When a single swallow was compared with a continuous swallow of approximately the same volume, the values of various parameters, tended to decrease with the latter. This was especially true for the time lag of the mandible. From these results, we found that the two swallowing patterns have their respective temporal characteristics, and that there is coordination between mandibular movements and swallowing pressures. The simultaneous measurement of mandibular movements and swallowing pressure may be useful in the assessment of swallowing.