[Anatomy and pathophysiology of deglutition disorders]

In the nervous system there are many automatized functions that require multilevel control. Some of them are more important because of their link with some vital functions. Only two are crucial to survival: respiration and the pumping of the heart. Swallowing is integrated within the respiratory system, explaining the need for great reliability and justifying the complexity of the organization described. The progress of medical imaging techniques has created new conditions for practicing radiologists, who need to know much more anatomy than in the past. Therefore, it is easier to learn anatomical details if there details are understood as part of an intelligent construction. We hope to have been able to demonstrate that swallowing is one good example of the real competency of the constructor of this system.