Re. Morton et al., VIDEOFLUOROSCOPY IN THE ASSESSMENT OF FEEDING DISORDERS OF CHILDREN WITH NEUROLOGICAL PROBLEMS, Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 35(5), 1993, pp. 388-395
A multidisciplinary assessment, including video fluoroscopy, was carri
ed out on 14 children with feeding difficulties associated with neurol
ogical problems. Recommendations were made on all aspects of feeding a
nd the trunk position was changed for half of the patients. A later in
terview with the parents confirmed that the recommendations had been h
elpful. The optimum trunk position for feeding was determined during v
ideofluoroscopy by positioning the patient in the erect or reclined po
sition, and also by analysis of relative difficulties during the oral
and pharyngeal phases of swallowing. Those with difficulties mainly in
the oral phase fed best in the reclined position; those with difficul
ties mainly in the pharyngeal phase fed best in the erect position, pa
rticularly if they had upper-oesophageal sphincter spasm in associatio
n with a tonic labyrinthine reflex.