Faculty Collaboration Database

Speech and swallowing in irradiated and nonirradiated postsurgical oral cancer patients. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1998 May;118(5):616-24

Date

05/20/1998

Pubmed ID

9591859

DOI

10.1177/019459989811800509

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-0031946223 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   175 Citations

Abstract

The effect of radiation on speech and swallowing function was assessed for 18 patients surgically treated for oral and oropharyngeal cancer. Nine patients received surgical intervention and postoperative radiation therapy, and nine received surgery only. Patients were matched regarding percentage of oral tongue resected, percentage of tongue base resected, locus of resection, and method of reconstruction. Speech and swallowing function was assessed before and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery following a standardized protocol. Speech tasks included an audio recording of a brief conversation and of a standard articulation test; swallowing function was examined with videofluoroscopy. Statistical testing indicated that overall speech function did not differ between the irradiated and nonirradiated patients. Irradiated patients had significantly reduced oral and pharyngeal swallowing performance, specifically, longer oral transit times on paste boluses, lower oropharyngeal swallow efficiency, increased pharyngeal residue, and reduced cricopharyngeal opening duration. Impaired function may be the result of radiation effects such as edema, fibrosis, and reduced salivary flow. Increased use of tongue range-of-motion exercises during and after radiation treatment may reduce the formation of fibrotic tissue in the oral cavity and may improve pharyngeal clearance by maintaining adequate tongue base-to-pharyngeal wall contact.

Author List

Pauloski BR, Rademaker AW, Logemann JA, Colangelo LA

Author

Barbara R. Pauloski PhD, CCC-SLP Associate Professor in the Communication Sciences & Disorders department at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Adult
Aged
Case-Control Studies
Deglutition
Edema
Exercise Therapy
Female
Fibrosis
Fluoroscopy
Follow-Up Studies
Glossectomy
Humans
Male
Mandible
Middle Aged
Mouth
Mouth Floor
Mouth Neoplasms
Oropharyngeal Neoplasms
Oropharynx
Pharyngeal Muscles
Prospective Studies
Radiation Injuries
Radiotherapy, Adjuvant
Saliva
Salivation
Speech
Speech Intelligibility
Tape Recording
Time Factors
Tongue
Videotape Recording