Shedding light on oropharyngeal dysphagia in myotonic dystrophy type 1

Research output: ThesisDoctoral ThesisExternal prepared

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Abstract

Oropharyngeal dysphagia, which involves difficulty eating and drinking, is a common symptom in neuromuscular disorders such as in myotonic dystrophy. Dysphagia takes a heavy financial toll on the healthcare system due to its complications that may include malnutrition, and aspiration pneumonia. Despite its importance, dysphagia is often under-diagnosed, presumably because it is overlooked in the clinical assessment of these patients. In this thesis we determine the characteristics of oropharyngeal dysphagia in myotonic dystrophy and we propose a multidimensional assessment of the swallowing function. The measurement scales used to asses swallowing were also explored aiming an improvement of dysphagia evaluation.
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • Maastricht University
Supervisors/Advisors
  • Kremer, Bernd, Supervisor
  • Baijens - Leurs, Laura, Co-Supervisor
  • Lima Passos, Valéria, Co-Supervisor
Award date29 Mar 2018
Place of PublicationMaastricht
Publisher
Print ISBNs9789461598073
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • oropharyngeal dysphagia
  • neuromuscular disorders
  • myotonic dystrophy
  • swallowing function
  • healthcare system
  • clinical assessment

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