AUTHOR=Lapa Sriramya , Neuhaus Elisabeth , Harborth Elena , Neef Vanessa , Steinmetz Helmuth , Foerch Christian , Reitz Sarah Christina 

TITLE=Dysphagia assessment in ischemic stroke after mechanical thrombectomy: When and how?

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2022.1024531

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2022.1024531

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Dysphagia is a frequent symptom in acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Endovascular treatment (EVT) has become the standard of care for acute stroke secondary to large vessel occlusion. Although standardized guidelines for poststroke dysphagia (PSD) management exist, they do not account for this setting in which patients receive EVT under general anesthesia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate PSD prevalence and severity, as well as an appropriate time point for the PSD evaluation, in patients undergoing EVT under general anesthesia (GA). 

We prospectively included 54 AIS patients undergoing EVT under GA. Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES) was performed within 24h post-extubation in all patients. Patients presenting significant PSD received a second FEES-assessment to determine the course of dysphagia deficits over time. Dysphagia severity was rated according the Fiberoptic Dysphagia Severity Scale (FEDSS). 

At first FEES assessment, performed in the median 13h (IQR 5-17) post-extubation, 49/54 patients (90.7%) with dysphagia were observed with a median FEDSS of 4 (IQR 3-6). Severe dysphagia requiring tube feeding was identified in 28/54 (51.9%) subjects, whereas in 21 (38.9%) patients early oral diet with certain food restrictions could be initiated. In the follow up FEES examination conducted in the median 72 hrs (IQR 70-97 hrs) after initial FEES 34/49 (69.4%) patients still presented PSD. Age (p=.030) and ventilation time (p=.035) were significantly associated with the presence of PSD at the second FEES. Significant improvement of dysphagia frequency (p=.006) and dysphagia severity (p=.001) could be detected between the first and second dysphagia assessment. 

PSD is a frequent finding both immediately within 24h after extubation, as well as in the short-term course. In contrast to common clinical practice, to delay evaluation of swallowing for at least 24 hrs post-extubation, we recommend a timely assessment of swallowing function after extubation,as 50% of patients were safe to begin oral intake. Given the high amount of severe dysphagic symptoms, we strongly recommend application of instrumental swallowing diagnostics due to its higher sensitivity, when compared to clinical swallowing examination. 
Furthermore, advanced age, as well as prolonged intubation, were identified as significant predictors for delayed recovery of swallowing function.