Validation of a Screening Tool for Swallowing Disorders for the Elderly

Summary

Swallowing disorder, or dysphagia, is a lack of protection of the airways during the passage of the food bolus towards the esophagus. Swallowing disorder is characterized by a feeling of discomfort when swallowing, difficult swallowing in elderly people or a blockage felt during the progression of food between the mouth and the stomach, sometimes with falsities. These disorders can be the cause of a loss of appetite and a reduction in food consumption in older people.

In the most serious cases, they can lead to aspiration, weakening the pulmonary passages and possibly leading to suffocation.

Swallowing disorders constitute an important public health problem due to their prevalence among the elderly. Many early readmissions could be avoided thanks to better quality of care in these patients.

In the elderly, the number of comorbidities and the multiplicity of medications and drug intake increase the incidence of swallowing disorders in this population. They constitute a common pathology, probably underestimated and underdiagnosed in the geriatric population.

Given the aging of the Martinique population, it is appropriate to offer an easy-to-use, quickly achievable tool for diagnostic purposes, making it possible to quickly identify potential swallowing disorders, and therefore to anticipate meal intake, and on the adaptation of the prescription to a medicinal alternative (before any food or medication taken during hospitalization).

In the Geriatric Short-Stay Unit of the Martinique University Hospital, a tool called "Deglut'G", was developed, and has been used since 2015, in order to allow caregivers a rapid, reliable and relevant assessment of swallowing disorders in the elderly, in order to guide care and medication alternatives.It now appears important to validate this tool, by comparing it with the results of examinations of swallowing disorders obtained from a speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and an ENT doctor.

Conditions

• Swallowing Disorder
• Dysphagia

Interventions

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Deglut'G test

Two tests to assess swallowing disorders using the Deglut'G tool will be carried out by a nurse or a caregiver from the Geriatric Short-Stay Unit, at visit 1. The tests can be taken successively, or spaced apart by a time defined by the medical team, and will be taken blind to each other. The average test administration time will be measured during the study, but the test should not exceed 10 minutes depending on the patients. The Deglut'G tool consists of an initial administration of gelled water (1 to 3 teaspoons), to identify if a cough occurs. In the event of a cough, the oral treatment is stopped; if the cough is absent, a new step this time consists of the administration of water (1 to 3 sips). In case of cough, the food will be mixed, the liquids thickened, and the medicinal treatments crushed. If there is no cough, foods and liquids can be taken as normal.

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

SLP swallowing test

At visit 1, 1 to 2 hours after the last Deglut'G test, a second swallowing test will be carried out by a SLP according to his skills and according to his usual practice, independently of the Deglut'G tool. This test should not exceed 20-30 minutes depending on the patient.

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

ENT doctor swallowing test

At Visit 2 (day 7 +/- 3 days after the inclusion), still as part of the short-stay hospitalization, the patient will meet an ENT doctor who will carry out an examination aimed at detecting swallowing disorders, according to his usual practice, of independent of the Deglut'G tool. The examination should not exceed 20-30 minutes depending on the patient.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University Hospital Center of Martinique

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Seendy Bartholet, PhD · University Hospital Center of Martinique

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

75 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-12-12

Primary Completion

2024-12-20

Completion

2024-12-20

Countries

• France