Possibility of deglutition function after laryngectomy

Objective: Surgical procedures on the larynx lead to some swallowing disorders of that may occur at any time during the postoperative period and can be present in all phases of swallowing. The aim of the study was to explore the prevalence of dysphagia after laryngectomy, the correlation and difference in dysphagia symptoms depending on the extent of the surgery. Methods: The study included 40 laryngectomized subjects of both sexes, median age 63.50 years. Data were collected by a survey of respondents and questionnaire structured from three sets of closed-ended questions. The data were statistically processed in the statistical program SPSS (version 16.0, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Results: The incidence of dysphagia is more often after partial laryngectomy with statistically significant differences in certain symptoms. A positive and statistically significant correlation was found between swallowing disorders and the consequences of oncological treatments. A negative and statistically significant correlation was found between swallowing disorders and the type of complications. Conclusion: The results show that patients who had surgery have varying degrees of swallowing disorders. The ability to identify symptoms of dysphagia becomes increasingly important when developing appropriate interventions for this subgroup of laryngeal cancer patients.