ORIGINAL ARTICLE REHABILITATION OF SWALLOWING WITH POLYDIMETHYLSILOXANE INJECTIONS IN PATIENTS

Abstract: Background. We conducted this longitudinal pro-spective study to illustrate a surgical technique for swallowing rehabilitation of patients after partial laryngectomy. Methods. Nine patients with persistent swallowing impair-ment after partial laryngectomy were included in the study. Evaluation of swallowing was performed by fiberoptic endo-scopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES), and was quantified using 2 scales: a dysphagia score and a modified penetration-aspiration scale. The site of bolus inhalation was identified. Pol-ydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) was injected into the neoglottis to fill these passages, and to obtain a certain continence of the organ. Results. Mean follow-up was 25 months (range, 5–39). All patients showed an improvement both in the dysphagia score and in the modified penetration-aspiration scale. Average improvement was 2.6 points in the dysphagia score (p .0042) and 2.1 points in the modified penetration-aspiration scale (p .0043). Conclusion. PDMS injection can be considered as an option in surgical rehabilitation of swallowing in patients wh