Influence of the masticatory function on the swallowing in the healthy elderly A influência da função mastigatória na deglutição orofaríngea em idosos saudáveis

Purpose: Verify if the masticatory characteristics influence the findings of the oropharyngeal swallowing in the elderly. Methods: Data from 47 healthy elderly subjects (29 female and 18 male) were analyzed and evaluated by the application of the mastication clinical protocol and the functional clinical examination of the oropharyngeal swallowing. The mastication evaluation was recorded in video; the mastication type, the bolus formation, and the mastication time were analyzed. During the clinical evaluation of the swallowing, patientsperformance was verified when food with different consistencies was tested. After this evaluation, subjects were classified according to the dysphagia level. Data was analyzed in a descriptive way using comparison and correlation statis- tical tests. Results: The average mastication time was 32.45 seconds. Most subjects presented bilateral mastication (62%), adequate bolus formation (75%) and about half (47%) had moderate oropharyngeal dysphagia. According to the statistic analysis, there was no correlation among the level of swallowing dysfunction, the mastication type and the bolus formation. However, there was a statistically significant moderate positive correlation between the level of swallowing dysfunction and the mastication time. Conclusion: It was verified that a relationship between the mastication time and the dysphagia level exists. However, no influence of mastication type and bolus formation on the swallowing of the elderly was found in this study.