Lung volume measured during sequential swallowing in healthy young adults.
OBJECTIVE
Outcomes from studying the coordinative relationship between respiratory and swallow subsystems are inconsistent for sequential swallows, and the lung volume at the initiation of sequential swallowing remains undefined. The first goal of this study was to quantify the lung volume at initiation of sequential swallowing ingestion cycles and to identify the respiratory pattern(s) surrounding each sequential swallow ingestion cycle. The second goal was to compare these results with existing data for single swallows.


METHODS
Twenty healthy young adults served as participants, 9 males and 11 females, between 19 and 28 years of age (M = 22 years of age). Participants completed 2 trials each of 100 mL of water self-delivered by cup and by straw. Calibrated respiratory inductance plethysmography, surface electromyography, and a contact throat microphone were used to detect respiratory parameters, identify swallow-related muscle contraction, and identify swallowing sounds, respectively.


RESULTS
Significantly higher lung volume initiation for trials delivered by straw and more variable respiratory patterns surrounding cup and straw sequential swallowing ingestion cycles existed compared with single swallows.


CONCLUSIONS
Results show that as the physiologic demands of swallowing deviate from single, small bolus swallows, the integration of the swallowing and respiratory systems change. This may reflect obligate differences in airway protection strategy and prolonged competition for respiratory resources.
Wheeler Hegland
Karen
K
Malcom Randall VA Medical Center, Gainesville, FL, USA. kwheeler@ufl.edu
Huber
Jessica E
JE
Pitts
Teresa
T
Davenport
Paul W
PW
Sapienza
Christine M
CM
D000328:Adult; D001049:Apnea; D002138:Calibration; D003679:Deglutition / Q000502:physiology*; D004576:Electromyography; D045853:Exhalation / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D001239:Inhalation / Q000502:physiology; D008176:Lung Volume Measurements / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D010614:Pharynx / Q000502:physiology*; D010991:Plethysmography / Q000379:methods; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D015656:Respiratory Mechanics / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult