Impact of Voice and Swallowing Problems in the Elderly
Objective 1) Evaluate the prevalence of and quality of life impact of voice and swallowing problems in the elderly. 2) Determine treatment trends and barriers to treatment. Methods Cross-sectional study of independent living residents in 2 retirement communities. Main outcome measures include prevalence of dysphonia and dysphagia, Voice Related Quality of Life (VRQOL), 7-point Likert scale of dysphagia severity, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale, and barriers to treatment. Relationship between continuous variables were analyzed with Spearman correlation and between categorical and continuous variables with a t-test. Results 248 residents responded, with a mean age of 82.4 years. 19.8% had dysphonia, 13.7% dysphagia, and 6% both. Respondents with more severe swallowing difficulty had greater impairment on the VRQOL (p = 0.04, Spearman correlation = −0.4). Respondents with both dysphonia and dysphagia had greater depression scores than those with neither symptom (mean CES-D score 15.5 versus 9.9, p = 0.008, t-test). While 75% of respondents with dysphonia were interested in treatment, only 20.4% and 2.1% had sought treatment for dysphonia and dysphagia, respectively. Being unaware of treatment options, and viewing voice and swallowing trouble as a normal part of aging, were the two most common reasons for not seeking treatment. Conclusions Voice and swallowing problems are common in the elderly but they are not realizing potential treatment benefits. Improved health care services for voice and swallowing problems in the elderly are essential.