title: Oral sensorimotor function for feeding in patients with tetanus.
abstract: Tetanus still remains a significant health problem in developing countries; it is a serious disease with a high mortality rate. The purpose of this study was to characterize the oral sensorimotor function for feeding in patients with tetanus. Thirteen patients clinically diagnosed with tetanus and admitted to an intensive care unit between December of 2005 and May of 2007 underwent a screening tool for dysphagia, involving the assessment of clinical features and 2 swallowing tests. Results indicate that the oral sensorimotor function for feeding in these patients is severely compromised, with the exception for the clinical feature of palate elevation and performance in the saliva swallowing test. The factor analysis indicated that the evaluation of tongue movement change in the oromotor examination is important in predicting alterations of cough/voice in the water swallowing test, thus suggesting that oral feeding might be unsafe. When looking at developing countries, the prolonged intensive medical and nursing care required by many patients with tetanus places extra demands on an already stretched healthcare budget. Intervention by a speech pathologist could mean that time in the ICU would be reduced as well as the number of re-admissions due to complications.
authors.affiliation: University of São Paulo School of Medicine, Rua Cipotania, 51, Campus Cidade Universitária, CEP 05360-160, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Laura Davison
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Mangilli
authors.forename: Fernanda Chiarion
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Sassi
authors.forename: Sigrid De Sousa
authors.initials: Sde S
authors.lastname: Dos Santos
authors.forename: Claudia Regina Furquim
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: de Andrade
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004750:Enteral Nutrition / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D009055:Mouth / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*; D013742:Tetanus / Q000628:therapy*