Presbyphagia: the importance of an early diagnosis in the aging population

Objectives. The aim of our study was to use the DRAS (Dysphagia Risk Assessment Scale) questionnaire in order to identify the percentage of the population over the age of 65 with unrecognized symptoms of dysphagia. Materials and methods. The DRAS questionnaire was administered to a group of 100 subjects over or equal to 65 years old. The same questionnaire was administered to a group of 50 healthy control individuals. All patients underwent fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) to confirm or exclude dysphagia. Results. Considering the cut off of 4, 33 subjects with positive a DRAS score (33%) were identified among the group of 100 subjects over the age of 65. In all of them dysphagia was confirmed by FEES. Based on the answers given by the 33 subjects with a positive DRAS score, we also identified which swallowing phase was more involved in different age groups. Conclusions. The administration of a questionnaire to the apparently healthy population over 65 years can be used as a screening method to make an early diagnosis of presbyphagia, in order to follow the patient over time and to avoid the complicances of an unrecognized dysphagia.