The latest forum in Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, guest edited by Dr. Brittany Krekeler, provides pediatric speech-language pathologists (SLPs) with three articles on tools used in pediatric swallowing. Read more about the forum below!

Device-Facilitated Approaches in Pediatric Dysphagia

The forum opens with an article by Gosa and Marshall providing readers with a “rapid review” of devices used in pediatric dysphagia therapy. The authors highlighted the importance of doing further research into the effectiveness of device-assisted therapy in children under age 18 with dysphagia.

Because most infants born pre-term have difficulties with sucking and eating, device-facilitated dysphagia therapies can be helpful in the neonatal intensive care unit. Martens et al. discuss the implementation and effectiveness of a number of these therapies in pre-term infants.

Finally, Bailey-Van Kuren and colleagues show how clinicians can implement identify and implement novel solutions in dysphagia care. They present two case studies showing how SLPs and multidisciplinary teams can focus on the total patient experience in dysphagia care.

Even More Dysphagia Content in Perspectives!

We’d like to thank Dr. Krekeler for serving as guest editor of this forum. Stay tuned to Perspectives later this year for another forum edited by Dr. Krekeler—this time focused on device-facilitated dysphagia management in adults.

You can explore the individual articles below or read the entire forum in the latest issue of Perspectives. In addition to the forum, the February issue contains 20 additional articles, including even more articles on dysphagia for ASHA’s clinicians.

Perspectives is published six times a year and contains research from all 20 of ASHA’s Special Interest Groups (SIGs) by leading authors who are committed to bridging the gap between research and practice. Perspectives is free for affiliates of any of SIG, so learn how you can join to have access to our archive of thousands of articles on implementation science.

Explore the Forum

Bailey-Van Kuren, M., Scarborough, D. R., & Schubert, M. S. (2024). A design-driven approach to develop innovative clinical experiences in dysphagia. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 9(1), 238–248. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_PERSP-23-00112

Gosa, M. M., & Marshall, J. (2024). Effect of device-assisted therapy in children with oropharyngeal dysphagia: A rapid review. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 9(1), 215–227. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_PERSP-23-00085

Martens, A., Melkonian, A., Shaughnessy, S., & Zimmerman, E. (2024). Perspectives on device-facilitated therapy in management of pediatric dysphagia in the neonatal intensive care unit. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 9(1), 228–237. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_PERSP-23-00172