Question
I'm struggling with how to teach patients such maneuvers such as supraglottic swallow, supersupraglottic, and Mendelsohn, can you help?
Answer
Good question! Depending on the cognitive level of the patient, these techniques might be fairly easy to teach...or a nightmare! Over the years we have used a combination of demonstration, simple verbal instruction, and surface electromyographic (sEMG) biofeedback to help patients learn these swallowing variants. The instructions are not special, just a simple description of the physiology of each maneuver (hold your breath, swallow hard, gentle cough). Then we demonstrate. The feedback helps patients learn new movements, such as swallow maneuvers more rapidly. I have found it very useful with the Mendelsohn maneuver. Good luck!
Michael A. Crary, PhD., is a Professor of Speech-Language Pathology and Director of the Florida Dysphagia Institute at the University of Florida Health Science Center. Dr. Crary's current clinical and research interests revolve around disorders of swallowing, specifically improving assessment and treatment strategies. Current research projects include studies of the clinical and instrumental evaluation of dysphagia and outcomes of various treatments. He has a long history as a practicing clinician and remains active in patient care. He has written and lectured extensively, including internationally, on these topics. His latest project is the text "The Introduction to Adult Swallowing Disorders" with Michael Groher. He has served as assistant director of the ASHA Special Interest Division #13: Dysphagia. He is a former nominee for the DiCarlo award from ASHA, a recipient of the Outstanding Clinical Achievement Award from ASHA, and has been elected as a Fellow of ASHA.
