Electrophysiological Evaluation of Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic, neurodegenerative movement disorder that typically affects elderly patients. Swallowing disorders are highly prevalent in PD and can have grave consequences, including pneumonia, malnutrition, dehydration and mortality. Neurogenic dysphagia in PD can manifest with both overt clinical symptoms or silent dysphagia. Regardless, early diagnosis and objective follow-up of dysphagia in PD is crucial for timely and appropriate care for these patients. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the electrophysiological methods that can be used to objectively evaluate dysphagia in PD. We discuss the electrophysiological abnormalities that can be observed in PD, their clinical correlates and the pathophysiology underlying these findings.

Keywords

• Parkinson’s disease
• Electromyography
• Dysphagia
• Oro-pharyngeal swallowing
• Crico-pharyngeal sphincter
• Diaphragm