Evaluation of the Efficacy of Focal Vibration Therapy-Novafon as an Assistive Therapeutic Tool for Children With Feeding and Swallowing Disorders.

Background: Paediatric dysphagia refers to any feeding and/or swallowing problem that affects nutritional or liquid intake safety or adequacy. There is a prominent lack of available evidence-based effective therapeutic tools to facilitate the rehabilitation of feeding and/or swallowing disorders in children.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of focal vibration therapy-Novafon as an assistive therapeutic intervention for children with feeding and swallowing difficulties.

Methods: The study involved 122 children with dysphagia who were divided into two groups: (1) 61 children who received conventional dysphagia therapy (cCDTh) and (2) 61 children who received conventional dysphagia therapy in combination with Novafon therapy (cCDTh+NTh). All children were evaluated for pre-, mid- and post-dysphagia therapy with the Gugging Swallowing Screen (GUSS) and Pediatric Eating Assessment Tool-10 (PEDI-EAT-10) in different Cypriot school and health settings.

Results: PEDI-EAT-10 total scores for both groups observed that the cCDTh+NTh group had a significant decrease in the overall median between pre- and post-dysphagia therapy total score (Median = 3.00) compared to the cTDTh score (Median = 7.00). GUSS total scores between the two groups showed an increase in overall medians but the cCDTh+NTh group (Median of pre-therapy = 16.50, mid-therapy = 19.00 and post-therapy = 20.00) noted a higher increase in medians compared to the cCDTh group (Median of pre-therapy = 15.00, mid-therapy = 16.00 and post-therapy = 17.00).

Conclusion: The present study highlights that focal vibration therapy using Novafon may serve as an effective and supportive approach within conventional dysphagia therapy for children. Further research is necessary to enhance the evidence-based literature on the use of Novafon in paediatric dysphagia.