Usefulness of a modified questionnaire as a screening tool for swallowing disorders in Parkinson disease: A pilot...

To determine the correlation between our questionnaire scores and two standard Parkinson's disease (PD) disability scores [Unified Parkinsons' Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) and Hoehn and Yahr (H and Y)], and to study the correlation between the various subgroups of our dysphagia screening questionnaire.

This study was conducted at a movement disorder clinic in a tertiary care hospital in Kochi, Kerala. This was a cross-sectional observational study.

A questionnaire was developed comprising 11 items, keeping in mind the most relevant swallowing issues in PD patients. The questions were subdivided into four groups representing the different stages of swallowing. Reliability and validity studies were conducted for the questionnaire. Corresponding UPDRS and H and Y scores were documented on the same day.

Mean and standard deviation (SD) values of the scores in each group and the correlation between scores (Pearson correlation coefficient) were done.

Responses were obtained from 106 PD patients (67 males, 39 females), with a mean age of 66.9 years (SD, 8.62). Our questionnaire score showed a high coefficient of variation (145%) compared to the UPDRS and H and Y scores. There was also moderate correlation between our questionnaire score and the two standard scores with a significant P value. Finally, the highest mean scores were for questions from group A and the least for questions from group D.

The association between worsening motor symptoms and swallowing difficulties has been documented in this study. The oral stage of swallowing remains the most affected in PD, which can be recognized early using our questionnaire.