Efficacy of a novel swallowing exercise program for chronic dysphagia in long-term head and neck cancer survivors.

Background: The efficacy of rehabilitative exercises for chronic dysphagia treatment in head and neck cancer survivors has not been studied extensively and is ambiguous.

Methods: A prospective clinical phase II study using an intensive strength training program was carried out in 17 head and neck cancer survivors with chronic dysphagia. Both swallow and nonswallow exercises were performed for 6-8 weeks with a newly developed tool allowing for progressive muscle overload, including chin tuck, jaw opening, and effortful swallow exercises.

Hyoid bone displacement as parameter for swallowing impairment in patients treated for advanced head and neck cancer.

Reduced hyoid displacement is thought to contribute to aspiration and pharyngeal residues in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients with dysphagia. To further study hyoid elevation and anterior excursion in HNC patients, this study reports on temporal/kinematic measures of hyoid displacement, with the additional goal to investigate correlations with clinical swallowing impairment. A single-blind analysis of data collected as part of a larger prospective study was performed at three time points before and after chemoradiotherapy.

Feasibility and potential value of lipofilling in post-treatment oropharyngeal dysfunction.

Objectives/hypothesis: Head and neck cancer (HNC) patients may develop oropharyngeal dysfunction as result of volume loss or muscle atrophy of the tongue or pharyngeal musculature following treatment with surgery and/or chemoradiotherapy. If intensive swallowing therapy offers no further improvement, and the functional problems persist, transplantation of autologous adipose tissue (lipofilling) might restore functional outcomes by compensating the existing tissue defects or tissue loss.

Study Design: Case series.

Prospective clinical study on long-term swallowing function and voice quality in advanced head and neck cancer patients treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy and preventive swallowing exercises.

Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) for advanced head and neck cancer (HNC) is associated with substantial early and late side effects, most notably regarding swallowing function, but also regarding voice quality and quality of life (QoL). Despite increased awareness/knowledge on acute dysphagia in HNC survivors, long-term (i.e.

Perioperative bone-conducted ocular vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials in otosclerosis patients.

Objective: Vestibular symptoms are seen variably in patients with otosclerosis, both in patients with the disease and in patients after treatment with stapes surgery. The goal of this study was to objectify any changes of the bone-conducted (BC) ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (oVEMPs) in patients with otosclerosis before and after stapes surgery.

Study Design: Twenty-six healthy subjects and 27 patients with otosclerosis were tested in a tertiary care center, and 11 of the patients were tested preoperatively and postoperatively.