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Oropharyngeal and Trunk Muscle Interactions After Stroke

NCT07261462 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 12

Last updated 2025-12-09

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Background:This study aimed to investigate the effects of a short-term tongue-jaw-back isometric exercise program on these muscle groups and their interrelationships in the post-stroke period.

Methods: Twelve post-stroke patients were included in the study. A 14-day exercise program, consisting of two daily sessions targeting the tongue, jaw, and back muscles, was administered. Anterior and posterior tongue muscles, jaw muscles, and back muscle strength were assessed before and after the exercise program. Tongue pressure was measured using the Iowa Oral Performance Instrument (IOPI), chewing strength with a hand-held dynamometer, and back strength with a stabilizing pressure biofeedback unit.

Results: After the 14-day isometric exercise program, anterior tongue strength (p = 0.025), posterior tongue strength (p = 0.021), and back muscle strength (p = 0.005) showed significant increases compared to pre-treatment values. No significant change was observed in jaw strength (p = 0.475). Spearman correlation analysis revealed no significant relationships between tongue muscles and jaw or back muscles before treatment, and simple correlations after treatment also did not reach significance. However, partial correlation analysis showed that the relationship between tongue muscles was significantly influenced by jaw strength (p = 0.040) and back strength (p = 0.038) after the intervention.

Conclusions: Short-term isometric exercises targeting tongue, jaw, and back muscles in post-stroke patients effectively increased tongue and back muscle strength and enhanced the synergistic relationship among these muscle groups.

Conditions

Interventions

OTHER

Exercise

Isometric Exercises for Tongue Muscles: Using a tongue depressor, patients were instructed to press their tongue forward, upward, downward, and to the sides against the depressor. These exercises aim to increase the strength of the tongue muscles, which play a critical role in swallowing function . Isometric Exercises for Jaw Muscles: Patients were asked to perform a chin tuck while in a supine position by tucking their chin toward their chest. Additionally, they were asked to place a soft ball under their chin and press against it to create an isometric contraction. These exercises target the muscles that facilitate swallowing. Isometric Exercises for Back Muscles: Patients who could not sit with proper balance performed the exercises in a supine position with a soft ball placed under their back. They were asked to press their back against the ball to perform an isometric contraction. Patients with sufficient sitting balance were instructed to sit upright, pressing their backs

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Necmettin Erbakan University

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
80 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2022-02-01
Primary Completion
2022-12-01
Completion
2022-12-25

Countries

  • Turkey (Türkiye)

Study Locations

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Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07261462 on ClinicalTrials.gov