<unk>  is going to be suspected if the patient answers yes to one of the following questions: Do you cough or choke when trying to eat? After you swallow, does the food ever come back out through your nose? A patient will most likely receive a Modified Barium swallow (MBS). Different consistencies of liquid and food mixed with barium sulfate are fed to the patient by spoon, cup or syringe, and x-rayed using videofluoroscopy. A patient's swallowing then can be evaluated and described. Some clinicians might choose to describe each phase of the swallow in detail, making mention of any delays or deviations from the norm. Others might choose to use a rating scale such as the Penetration Aspiration Scale. The scale was developed to describe the disordered physiology of a person's swallow using the numbers 1-8. Other scales also exist for this purpose. A patient can also be assessed using videoendoscopy, also known as flexible fiberoptic endoscopic examination of swallowing (FFEES). The instrument is placed into the nose until the clinician can view the pharynx and then he or she examines the pharynx and larynx before and after swallowing. During the actual swallow, the camera is blocked from viewing the anatomical structures. A rigid scope, placed into the oral cavity to view the structures of the pharynx and larynx, can also be used, though this prevents the patient from swallowing. Other less frequently used assessments of swallowing are imaging studies, ultrasound and scintigraphy and nonimaging studies, electromyography (EMG), electroglottography (EGG)(records vocal fold movement), cervical auscultation, and pharyngeal manometry.
Oropharyngeal dysphagia
Cricopharyngeal spasm
Velopharyngeal insufficiency
Vocal cord paresis
Alaryngeal speech
Muscle tension dysphonia
Ankyloglossia
Crenated tongue