Ryoko Akahori, MD, Hitoshi Kagaya, MD, DMSc, Megumi Ozeki, MD, DMSc, Seiko Shibata, MD, DMSc, Yoichiro Aoyagi, MD, PhD, Keiko Onogi, MD, DMSc,
Eiichi Saitoh, MD, DMSc
Jpn J Compr Rehabil Sci 9: 43-51, 2018
Objective: To elucidate the details of dysphagia
associated with acute-phase brainstem cerebrovascular
disorders.
Methods: A total of 207 patients with brainstem
cerebrovascular disorder that had developed within
the past 3 days were examined at the Department of
Rehabilitation Medicine. The median duration of
hospital stay was 20 days. The most common lesion
site was the pons in 168 patients and the lateral medulla
in 25. A total of 167 patients had no history of
cerebrovascular disorder in any part of the brain other
than the brainstem (CVD-), and 40 patients had such
a history (CVD+). A retrospective survey of these
patients was conducted to identify the dysphagia
severity scale (DSS) scores, eating status scale (ESS)
scores, food texture, seating positions during meals,
onset of pneumonia during follow-up, and functional
independence measure (FIM).
Results: A total of 51% of CVD- patients and 64% of
CVD+ patients had dysphagia, and DSS, ESS, food
texture, and FIM scores at discharge all showed
improvement at a significance level of 5%. No
significant differences in DSS, ESS, and pneumonia
incidence were observed between the CVD- and
CVD+ patients.
Conclusions: The results of this study indicated that
dysphagia can be improved even in patients with both
CVD+ and CVD- acute-phase brainstem cerebrovascular
disorders.
Key words: brainstem, cerebrovascular disorder, dysphagia, acute-phase