H1 Dysphagia in huntington’s disease: symptoms and a patient perspective

Background

Dysphagia is a frequent finding in patients with HD. Up to 75% of the patients die of aspiration pneumonia. Symptoms of dysphagia already start in the very beginning of HD and become more severe when the disease progresses. The different symptoms of dysphagia in HD are already known. It is also known that there are treatment possibilities for dysphagia, such as the Masako and the Mendelsohn manoeuvre, but these are validated for other diseases, like a cerebro vascular accident or Parkinson’s disease. There is no evidence that patients with HD benefit from this treatment. In our experience with HD, patients do benefit from dysphagia treatment. In this presentation dysphagia symptoms are presented using X-ray imaging, further, some treatment possibilities for dysphagia will be introduced by presenting a case study.

Method

X-ray images on dysphagia symptoms during the different stages of HD were collected. More than 30 HD patients with dysphagia were treated using the Masako and Mendelsohn manoeuvre. For one specific patient a video was made to make a report of her swallowing progress.

Results

X-ray images of dysphagia in HD were collected and will be shown in the presentation. More than 30 HD patients were treated for dysphagia using the Masako and Mendelsohn manoeuvre. Most patients could perform at least one manoeuvre, and most patients reported that they benefit from the treatment. For one specific patient a video was made to document the swallowing progress. The video was published on www.huntingtonplein.nl.

Conclusion

An impressive collection of X-ray imaging on dysphagia in HD exists. For treatment possibilities, patients with HD seem to benefit from especially the Masako and Mendelsohn manoeuvre. For one patient the findings were documented and recorded on a video. This video was published on www.huntingtonplein.nl, and parts of this video will be presented during the presentation.