Masters Degrees (Medical Physiology)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (Medical Physiology) by Author "Basson, Tobias Johannes"

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    Changes in hyo-laryngeal elevation post-pharyngeal electrical stimulation
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04) Basson, Tobias Johannes; Pillay, Mershen; Du Plessis, Stefan S.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Health Sciences. Dept. of Biomedical Sciences. Medical Physiology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Swallowing disorders are prevalent in many elderly individuals and are common amongst individuals suffering from neurological diseases. These individuals are affected from slight swallowing difficulty to total swallowing inability. In severe cases this may cause aspiration pneumonia, dehydration, malnutrition and ultimately death. Swallowing disorders can be diagnosed and treated to increase quality of life. New treatment strategies to understand the pathophysiology and impaired swallowing response are needed. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation is used as rehabilitation method in various disciplines. This method of rehabilitation of physiological dysfunction is used in treating swallowing disorders and has become a focus for current research. To understand the effect of electrical stimulation to the swallowing centre it is proposed to study its mechanism on normal swallowing musculature. The outcome of the effect that electrical stimulation has on healthy individuals may possibly be used to extrapolate to clinical settings and its benefit for modern dysphagia rehabilitation. The purpose of this study was to report on the hyo-laryngeal movement pattern of young healthy, male and female, individuals and to measure the effect of a single neuromuscular electrical stimulation session on the hyo-laryngeal complex of 22 young healthy individuals. Lastly, the aim was to determine the detraining or lasting effect on the hyo-laryngeal swallowing complex of a single neuromuscular electrical stimulation session. The study reported on baseline hyo-laryngeal complex movement patterns by measuring the anterior movement and elevation of the hyo-laryngeal complex through the use of videofluoroscopy swallow study. Analysis of these measurements where done to report on the effect of electrical stimulation on the hyo-laryngeal complex movement pattern pre- and post- electrical stimulation. Significant changes were revealed with elevation of the hyo-laryngeal complex, however no significant effects could be found with anterior movement of the hyo-laryngeal complex pre- and post- electrical stimulation. It was found that elevation of the hyo-laryngeal complex lowered after a single electrical stimulation session. The hyo-laryngeal complex movement pattern remained similar between genders. Lastly it was found that a single electrical stimulation session showed significant reversibility towards baseline levels. This might be related to muscle fatigue and one would need to take into account muscle recovery for future research.