Defense Date

6-12-2025

Graduation Date

Summer 8-8-2025

Availability

Immediate Access

Submission Type

thesis

Degree Name

MS

Department

Speech-Language Pathology (SLP)

School

Rangos School of Health Sciences

Committee Chair

Abigail Delehanty

Committee Member

Brooke Baumann

Committee Member

Panayiota Senekkis-Florent

Keywords

Mastication, Oral Preparatory Phase, Swallowing, Textures, Color-changing Gum, Kinematic Analysis, Food Comfort & Enjoyment, Chewing, Social Validity

Abstract

Despite its subconscious nature, deglutition is an elaborate and multifaceted process, contingent on the activation of specific neural pathways and muscles. The inherent complexity gives rise to a wide array of potential complications and difficulties, known as dysphagia. Screening and assessment for dysphagia aid in determining the presence and etiology of swallowing difficulties, providing information that is critical for maintaining and improving the health status of vulnerable populations from the standpoint of nutrition, hydration, and socialization (Dziewas et al., 2017). Previous studies surrounding dysphagia assessment have prioritized formulating clinical protocols to evaluate the nonvolitional stage, often failing to address the voluntary segment of the swallow. The aim of this paper is to design and test the precision, accuracy, and feasibility of a protocol encompassing four methodologies for evaluating the volitional segment of swallowing in clinical practice in the field of speech-language pathology.

Language

English

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