PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - MAYO, BENJAMIN C.
AU  - MASSEL, DUSTIN H.
AU  - BOHL, DANIEL D.
AU  - PATEL, DIL V.
AU  - KHECHEN, BENJAMIN
AU  - HAWS, BRITTANY E.
AU  - NARAIN, ANKUR S.
AU  - HIJJI, FADY Y.
AU  - SINGH, KERN
TI  - Dysphagia Following Anterior Cervical Spine Surgery: Assessment Using an Abridged SWAL-QOL
AID  - 10.14444/6014
DP  - 2019 Feb 01
TA  - International Journal of Spine Surgery
PG  - 102--109
VI  - 13
IP  - 1
4099  - https://www.ijssurgery.com/content/13/1/102.short
4100  - https://www.ijssurgery.com/content/13/1/102.full
SO  - Int J Spine Surg2019 Feb 01; 13
AB  - Background: Study design: Retrospective cohort study. Objective: To determine which components of the swallowing disorders quality of life (SWAL-QOL) survey are most relevant to assess dysphagia following anterior cervical spine surgery (ACSS). Summary of background data: The SWAL-QOL survey is an instrument that has been applied to patients undergoing ACSS procedures as a means of objectifying swallow function. However, the SWAL-QOL is lengthy, cumbersome, and primarily used for otolaryngological procedures.Methods: Patients undergoing ACSS procedures were administered the SWAL-QOL prior to surgery and at 6- and 12-week postoperative visits. The preoperative and postoperative SWAL-QOL scores were compared using paired t tests. Questions with statistically and clinically significant postoperative changes were used to create an abridged survey.Results: Fifty patients completed surveys at all 3 encounters and were included in the analysis. The total scaled score at 6 weeks was significantly lower than the preoperative score (P = .003) but returned to near baseline scores by 12 weeks (P = .178). Five sections had significantly lower scores at both postoperative visits compared to their respective preoperative values. Additionally, 13 individual questions had significantly lower scores at both postoperative visits, while 8 had significantly lower scores at only 1 of the postoperative visits. Of these 21 questions demonstrating statistical significance, 16 also demonstrated a clinically significant decrease (>5.0%) from preoperative scores. These 16 questions were included in the abridged survey developed for use in ACSS patients.Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that several questions in the full SWAL-QOL questionnaire demonstrated minor or no changes at postoperative visits following ACSS. As a result, we propose a modified, 16-question SWAL-QOL survey including only questions that were both statistically and clinically significant. This truncated survey may be better suited for use in cervical spine patients.