Page 74 - Functional impairment and cues for rehabilitation of head and neck cancer patients -

Chapter 3
RESULTS
Swallowing outcomes
Swallowing outcomes are presented in Table 2. Patients rated their eating and drinking speed and their overall swallowing function lower than healthy participants. Also, all SWAL-QOL scores were higher in patients, indicating worse swallowing related quality of life, and more patients experienced deteriorated taste and olfaction. Moreover, patients more often had a modified diet (FOIS below 7) and their median maximal mouth opening was smaller. The two SLPs rated the degree of dysphagia the same in 32 of the patients, with the other six only differing one degree.
Table 2 Swallowing outcomes. P values of either Mann-Whitney U testa, linear-by-linear approximation of the Chi- square testb.
Patient group (n = 38) N (%)
Healthy group (n = 40) N (%)
P value
Subjective swallowing outcomes
Rated percentage eating and drinking speed
Median (range)
Rated percentage swallowing function
Median (range)
SWAL-QOL (0–100) Median (range) Higher score = more problems
General burden Food selection Eating duration Eating desire Fear of eating Sleep
Fatigue Communication Mental health Social function Symptom score Total score
50 (0-100) 58 (3-100)
50 (0-100) 50 (0-100) 69 (0-100) 42 (0-100) 44 (0-100) 50 (0-100) 50 (0-83) 44 (0-100) 38 (0-100) 30 (0-80) 44 (11-80) 44 (3-91)
100 (70-100) 100 (80-100)
0 (0-100) 0 (0-38)
0 (0-50)
0 (0-75)
0 (0-38) 25 (0-100) 21 (0-75) 0 (0-25)
0 (0-25) 0 (0-25) 7 (0-29) 2 (0-42)
<.001a <.001a
<.001a <.001a <.001a <.001a <.001a .011a <.001a <.001a <.001a <.001a <.001a <.001a
72