Myofunctional therapy as an aid to prosthodontic treatment after hemiglossectomy: a clinical report

Impairments in Food Oral Processing in Patients Treated for Tongue Cancer

Patients surgically treated for oral cancer are affected by several underestimated deglutition disorders risk factors. This study aims to characterize the level of these food oral processing (FOP) impairments in a group of patients treated by surgery for tongue cancer. Twenty-seven consecutive patients surgically treated for tongue cancer were evaluated concerning their chewing capacity (Mastication-test), and responded to questions concerning their capacity to bite, chew and manipulate food with their tongue, and their quality of life. According to the Mastication-test, 16 patients suffered total FOP incapacities (TI group), characterized by high tumor stage, invasive carcinological surgery and necessity of reconstructive surgery; 12 patients were partially or not impaired (PI/NI-group). Tongue movement score and number of dental units were lower in the TI group than in the PI/NI-group. Subjective FOP criteria were clearly impaired in the TI group and correlated with a poor oral health-related quality of life. One year after surgery, there is a decrease in BMI for TI group patients while the PI group patients had a significant increase in BMI. All patients surgically treated for oral cancer suffered FOP impairments, but not with the same severity. Totally impaired subjects are at higher risk from long-term malnutrition. Functional evaluation of FOP should form part of the post-operative follow-up for all patients suffering from tongue cancer, using a quick combined evaluation of chewing efficiency, oral health quality of life and nutritional status.

Effects of an Oral-Pharyngeal Motor Training Programme on Children with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome in Hong Kong: A Retrospective Pilot Study

Background

This study aimed to investigate the effects of an oropharyngeal motor training programme on children with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) in Hong Kong.

Methods

In this retrospective study, we reviewed the outcomes of 10 children with OSAS who had received an oropharyngeal motor training programme in Occupational Therapy Department of an acute hospital in Hong Kong over a 1-year programme. Each participant attended an individual oropharyngeal motor training programme plus a follow-up session after 2 months. The training programme consisted of 10 individual mobilization exercises involving the orofacial and pharyngeal area for 45 minutes. Each exercise had to be repeated for 10 times. Three outcome measures were chosen to study the effectiveness of the training programme including tongue strength, tongue endurance level and orofacial function. Tongue strength and tongue endurance level were assessed using the Iowa Oral Pressure Instrument (IOPI). The Nordic Orofacial Test-Screening (NOT-S) Assessment was used to assess the orofacial function. Seven out of 10 participants completed the training programme and attended the follow-up session after two months.

Results

The tongue strength and the scores of NOT-S of the 7 participants were found to have significant improvement after training. However, there was no significant difference in tongue endurance level.

Conclusion

The findings of this study support the role of occupational therapist in oromotor training modalities to improve the respiratory function for children with OSAS in Hong Kong. Copyright © 2017, Hong Kong Occupational Therapy Association. Published by Elsevier (Singapore) Pte Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).