Free from Dysphagia? A Test Battery to Differentiate Between Mild and No Dysphagia

Assessing mild oropharyngeal dysphagia (OD) raises the question where to draw the line between normal and pathological swallowing. There is a lack of clinical test methods appropriate in the subacute phase of recovery from dysphagia following stroke and other brain injuries. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of a new test battery, called the Swallow Battery (SwaB), in relation to Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES). SwaB consists of the validated tests Repetitive Saliva Swallowing Test (RSST), Timed Water Swallowing Test (TWST) and parts of the Test of Masticating and Swallowing Solids (ToMaSS). Nineteen adult patients with acquired brain injury who were enrolled in a rehabilitation programme underwent the SwaB and a FEES, both resulting in a pass or fail outcome. The pass or fail results were based on RSST's and TWST's suggested cutoffs, normative values of ToMaSS and on established rating scales used for FEES. The SwaB's ability to predict FEES results was 74% according to a binary logistic regression analysis, with a 92% correct prediction of fail results and 33% correct prediction of pass results. The ToMaSS was sensitive to small changes in eating ability, failing 13 out of 19 patients using 95% CI normative values as cutoff, including patients with a passed FEES. Alternative cutoffs were therefore suggested, depending on purpose of dysphagia assessment. The results of this study indicate that the SwaB may be a useful tool when assessing mild dysphagia following brain injury. Further studies of SwaB's validity and clinical utility are suggested.