Effects of functional electrical stimulation on dysphagia caused by radiation therapy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation on the swallowing function of irradiated nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with dysphagia.


METHODS
Twenty nasopharyngeal carcinoma subjects with dysphagia were divided into a functional electrical stimulation (FES) and a home rehabilitation program (HRP) group. Each subject completed a quality of life questionnaire on swallowing and a videofluoroscopic study at the commencement and the end of the procedures. The FES group received functional electrical stimulation of the supra-hyoid muscles over 15 sessions. The HRP group performed self-swallowing exercises at home. The evaluation parameters included the quality of life questionnaire scores, the penetration-aspiration scale (PAS), the movement of the hyoid bone, and the amount of pyriform sinuses stasis.


RESULTS
Most swallowing outcomes of the FES group improved after FES. The quality of life score (p=0.003), the duration of the movement of thin barium through the hyoid (p=0.001), the moving speed of paste barium through the hyoid (p=0.028), and the pyriform sinus stasis area of the paste barium (p=0.026) reached significant difference in the FES group. Most swallowing outcomes did not improve in the HRP group. The degree of improvement in the movement speed of the hyoid bone in the thin barium (p=0.018) and the PAS of the paste barium (p=0.016) were statistically significantly greater in the FES group than in the HRP group.


CONCLUSIONS
FES will improve the swallowing function of NPC patients with dysphagia and bring about better quality of life.
Lin
Pei-Hung
PH
Department of Speech and Hearing Disorders and Sciences, National Taipei College of Nursing, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Hsiao
Tzu-Yu
TY
Chang
Yeun-Chung
YC
Ting
Lai-Lei
LL
Chen
Wen-Shiang
WS
Chen
Su-Chiu
SC
Wang
Tyng-Guey
TG
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000628:therapy*; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011788:Quality of Life; D011832:Radiation Injuries; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome