Comparison between clinical and videofluoroscopic evaluation of swallowing in children with suspected dysphagia

<sec><title>Purpose:</title><p> To verify the accuracy of clinical evaluation compared with videofluoroscopic swallowing studies in the detection of isolated laryngeal penetration and laryngeal aspiration in children with suspected dysphagia; to identify clinical signs and sy...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lenice de Fatima da Silva-Munhoz, Karina Elena Bernardis Bühler, Suelly Cecilia Olivan Limongi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Fonoaudiologia
Series:CoDAS
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2317-17822015000200186&lng=en&tlng=en
Description
Summary:<sec><title>Purpose:</title><p> To verify the accuracy of clinical evaluation compared with videofluoroscopic swallowing studies in the detection of isolated laryngeal penetration and laryngeal aspiration in children with suspected dysphagia; to identify clinical signs and symptoms associated with isolated laryngeal penetration and laryngeal aspiration; and to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the clinical signs and symptoms identified.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods:</title><p>Retrospective analysis of data from clinical and videofluoroscopic evaluations carried out in 55 children from 1 month to 7 years and 11 months old. For clinical assessment, the Protocol for Clinical Assessment of Pediatric Dysphagia was used. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of clinical evaluation were analyzed. For statistical analysis, the Fisher's exact and χ<sup>2</sup> tests were used.</p></sec><sec><title>Results:</title><p>Clinical evaluation showed, in general, a sensitivity of 86% and a specificity of 32%. For isolated laryngeal penetration, clinical evaluation showed a sensitivity of 88%. For laryngeal aspiration, clinical evaluation showed a sensitivity of 86%. However, the specificity values were low for both alterations. There was no association between clinical evaluation and videofluoroscopic findings. Choking was the only clinical sign associated with isolated laryngeal penetration thin fluid and showed a sensitivity of 53% and a specificity of 77%.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusions:</title><p> Clinical evaluation was sensible to detect isolated laryngeal penetration and laryngeal aspiration in children with suspected dysphagia. However, it showed a low specificity. Choking was the only clinical sign associated with isolated laryngeal penetration of thin fluid. More prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings in this population.</p></sec>
ISSN:2317-1782