• Jae-Won Huh, Eunhee Park, Yu-Sun Min, Ae Ryoung Kim, Won-Jong Yang, Hyun-Min Oh, Tae-Woo Nam, and Tae-Du Jung.
• Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, South Korea.
• Singap Med J. 2020 Sep 1; 61 (9): 487-491.

IntroductionWe aimed to determine the optimal placement of electrodes for neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) for post-stroke dysphagia therapy.Methods31 patients with post-stroke dysphagia were randomised to three groups according to NMES electrode placement. In Group A (n = 10), two pairs of electrodes were attached horizontally on the suprahyoid and infrahyoid muscles. In Group B (n = 11), one pair of electrodes was attached horizontally on the suprahyoid muscles while the other was attached vertically on the infrahyoid muscles. In Group C (n = 10), the electrodes were attached vertically, with one pair above the hyoid bone and the other above the cricoid cartilage. All patients received rehabilitation treatment via NMES combined with effortful swallowing training five times weekly for four weeks. The effect of NMES electrode placement was assessed in terms of the Functional Dysphagia Scale (FDS) and Dysphagia Outcome and Severity Scale (DOSS) scores.ResultsGroup A showed significantly greater improvement than Group B in overall FDS (p = 0.009) and pharyngeal-phase FDS (FDS-P; p = 0.005) scores. Group A also showed significant improvement when compared with Group C in overall FDS (p = 0.001) and FDS-P (p = 0.001) scores.ConclusionHorizontal placement of the NMES electrodes on the suprahyoid and infrahyoid muscles for the treatment of post-stroke dysphagia by NMES combined with effortful swallowing was more effective than the horizontal and vertical placement of electrodes on the suprahyoid and infrahyoid muscles, respectively, and their vertical placement above the hyoid bone and cricoid cartilage.Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association.

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