Sequential Tongue Pressure and Laryngeal Movement during Swallowing

Park, Jin Hong; Choi, Kyoung Hyo; Kim, Yong Mi; Song, Young Jin; Park, Eun Jung; Shin, Dong Ik

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To test the repeatability and the reproducibility of a newly developed device which measures tongue pressure and laryngeal movement, to identify the range of tongue pressure and to reveal the relationships between tongue pressure and age, gender and diet formula. METHOD: One hundred five healthy subjects (50 males, 55 females, range 20 to 74 years) were recruited for the study. They had examinations of tongue pressure and laryngeal movement. The pressure was measured with two air-filled bulbs connected to a transducer. Laryngeal movement was measured with a strain gauge. The test was repeated three times with a two minute rest interval and monitored twice by the same investigator and once by another investigator. All subjects performed 10 times of swallowing: 5 times each of 3 ml liquid and dry swallowing.
RESULTS
Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for both the repeatability and the reproducibility revealed good to moderate reliability for tongue pressure measurement and the time of maximum tongue pressure (ICC, 0.60~0.84). However, it was poor for measurement of laryngeal movement. There were no significant differences between gender and age groups in tongue pressure, the time to maximum tongue pressure and laryngeal movement. The tongue pressure was higher in dry swallowing than in wet swallowing. Also, the time to maximum tongue pressure and overall laryngeal movement were prolonged in dry swallowing.
CONCLUSION
The newly developed tongue pressure measurement system is a reliable apparatus and there are no significant age and gender differences in tongue and laryngeal movement in healthy subjects.