An electrophysiological approach to the diagnosis of neurogenic dysphagia; implications for botulinum toxin treatment

Enrico Alfonsi (1) , Ilaria Maria Merlo (1) , Michela Ponzio (2) , Cristina Montomoli (2) , Cristina Tassorelli (1) , Caterina Biancardi (1) , Alessandro Lozza (1) , Emilia Martignoni (3)

1 Fondazione Istituto Neurologico C.Mondino, IRCCS Pavia
2 UNIPV - Università degli Studi di Pavia = University of Pavia
3 Istituto Scientifico di Veruno, I.R.C.C.S., Fondazione S. Maugeri

Botulinum toxin (BTX) injection into the cricopharyngeal (CP) muscle has been proposed for the treatment of neurogenic dysphagia due to CP hyperactivity. We aimed to find out whether an electrophysiological method exploring oro-pharyngeal swallowing could guide treatment and discriminate responders from non-responders, based on the association of CP dysfunction with other electrophysiological abnormalities of swallowing.

Mots clés: BOTULINUM TOXIN; DYSPHAGIA; NEUROPHYSIOL; CLINICAL

Enrico Alfonsi, Ilaria Maria Merlo, Michela Ponzio, Cristina Montomoli, Cristina Tassorelli, et al.. An electrophysiological approach to the diagnosis of neurogenic dysphagia; implications for botulinum toxin treatment. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 2009, 81 (1), pp.54. ⟨10.1136/jnnp.2009.174698⟩. ⟨hal-00552779⟩