SWALLOWING DIFFICULTIES AND EARLY CNS INJURIES - CORRELATION WITH THEPRESENCE OF AXIAL SKELETAL DEFORMITIES

We reviewed the neurological findings in 36 adults with history of per inatal brain injury that required gastrostomy due to progressive swall owing difficulties in a population of 624 institutionalized patients. A stereotypic pattern of progression of deficits was observed. Risk fa ctors that correlated with increased risk of swallowing disorders incl uded: presence of multiple handicaps; progressive deformities of the s pine and extremities; decreased range of motion of mandible, laterogna thism and other mandibular asymmetries. These findings suggest that sp inal deformities and swallowing difficulties are part of a spectrum of impaired function of paired axial muscles in this population. The ide ntification of these risk factors may help in the long-term care plan of severely impaired patients whose survival is extended by the use of feeding tubes.