Oropharyngeal Dysphagia and Odynophagia in Patients with Thermal Burn Injuries

Dysphagia and odynophagia pose significant challenges to the overall well-being and recovery of patients after thermal burn injuries. This study aims to document the clinical presentation of oropharyngeal dysphagia and odynophagia in dysphagic patients with thermal burn injuries. Twenty-five patients with signs and symptoms of dysphagia who were admitted to the Burn Intensive Care Unit (BICU) and burn wards were included in this descriptive cross-sectional study. The Mann Assessment of Swallowing Ability (MASA) was employed to assess swallowing function and characterize dysphagia. The severity of dysphagia was determined by the Purpose-Built Rating Scale, while the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) assessed odynophagia severity under the evaluation of speech-language pathologists (SLPs). Evaluations confirmed that 19 (76%) patients experienced bolus escape during the oral preparation phase, 16 (64%) patients reported solid food sticking in their throat, and seven (28%) exhibited a hoarse cough during voluntary coughing. The severity of dysphagia was classified as 52% mild, 20% moderate, and 28% severe. Odynophagia affected 92% of patients, with a moderately high average pain level (Mean[Formula: see text]6.2, SD = 2.56). These findings highlight that patients with thermal burn injuries experienced a wide range of dysphagia and odynophagia symptoms. Identifying the characteristics of thermal burn-related dysphagia may guide researchers in developing tailored swallowing assessment tools for this population.