Impact of nasogastric tube feeding on swallowing function in patients with dysphagia: a pilot study

During dysphagia treatment, direct oral swallowing therapy is applied to some patients temporarily fed via nasogastric tube. However, the risk of aspiration in oral swallowing while nasogastric tube in situ may be disregarded in a standard videofluoroscopic swallowing study performed without a nasogastric tube. To evaluate the diagnostic significance of nasogastric tube in situ videofluoroscopic swallowing study of nectar and pureed diet compared to the standard videofluoroscopic swallowing study without nasogastric tube. Videofluoroscopic swallowing study records of dysphagia patients conducted between June and August 2017 in a university hospital were collected for review. Rosenbek's penetration-aspiration scale, diagnostic criteria of aspiration were used to define aspiration. videofluoroscopic dysphagia scale for videofluoroscopic swallowing study with or without nasogastric tube were compared for nectar and pureed diet swallowing. Patients had various duration of nasogastric tube feeding. Paired T-test comparing the videofluoroscopic dysphagia scales for videofluoroscopic swallowing study with or without nasogastric tube revealed significant aggravation of swallowing dysfunction in nectar drinking while nasogastric tube in situ. This aggravation was noted in 19% (n=4) of patients who suffered from stroke regardless of nasogastric tube duration. Nasogastric tube in situ videofluoroscopic swallowing study, at least of nectar drinking could be beneficial in selecting a safe candidate for direct oral swallowing therapy in conjunction with the conventional nasogastric tube removed videofluoroscopic swallowing study.