Disclosures: Kyoung Hyo Choi, Dr: No financial relationships or conflicts of interest
Miran Yoo, n/a: No financial relationships or conflicts of interest

Objective: Because dysphagia after stroke can lead to aspiration pneumonia, which increases post-stroke morbidity and mortality, early identification of dysphagia may be necessary. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of formal dysphagia screening for stroke patients in the prevention of aspiration pneumonia.

Design: Retrospective cohort study Setting : The stroke registry of a tertiary hospital, which included patients with acute stroke within 30 days. In our center, dysphagia screening was used for stroke patients with higher stroke severity until 2012 and has been routinely performed in all stroke patients since 2014. Participants : The stroke registry of a tertiary hospital, which included patients with acute stroke within 30 days in 2011 and from 2014 to 2015.

Interventions: Not applicable

Main Outcome Measures: We compared clinical variables and the incidence of aspiration pneumonia between stroke patients who were hospitalized between 2014 and 2015, after formal screening was implemented, and those who were hospitalized in 2011, before formal dysphagia screening was implemented. Additionally, we compared the development of aspiration pneumonia between the test groups according to stroke severity.

Results: During the study period, a total of 2,941 patients with acute stroke (2,045 with routine dysphagia screening test, 896 without screening) were identified. Patients with routine dysphagia screening developed aspiration pneumonia less frequently than those without screening (formal screening [1.3 %] vs. no formal screening [3.4 %], p=0.01). Occurrence of aspiration pneumonia was significantly lower in patients with moderate and severe stroke who underwent formal dysphagia screening, but not in those with mild stroke. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that formal dysphagia screening is associated with reduced risk of post-stroke aspiration pneumonia. Formal dysphagia screening may be necessary for all stroke patients.

Level of Evidence: Level III

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PM&R Meeting Abstracts - https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/the-effectiveness-of-formal-dysphagia-screening-for-stroke-patients/