Many Fort Wayne people suffering from neck pain, stiffness, or other degenerative cervical
spine disease conditions may be surprised to learn
how it might affect your ability to swallow.
Dysphagia is the technical term for swallowing problems.
While cervical spine conditions may affect pharyngeal swallowing function, it is important to recognize
just how and why that would occur. Let’s,
Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc and you, look
more closely at the connection between cervical spine
disorders and swallowing function.
The Link Between Cervical Spine Pain and Swallowing Function
The relationship between cervical spine pain conditions and
swallowing function involves both sensory and motor components.
When it comes to the sensory part, pain stemming
from the neck can hamper
your ability to sense what is in your mouth,
resulting in trouble knowing when to swallow
which can lead to issues such as choking
or coughing while eating. On the motor side of things, cervical
spine pain conditions might also disturb your
ability to move food as it moves through your mouth
and throat by disrupting normal tongue, jaw, and
hyolaryngeal motions (the movement of the hyoid bone, the bone
that holds the tongue). Therefore, there may
be trouble clearing food debris from your mouth after each
bite or sip. Furthermore, cervical spine disorder has been linked to heightened risk of aspiration (inhaling food
particles) due to decreased laryngeal elevation that commonly
occurs during swallowing. (1) Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc wants our Fort Wayne
cervical spine pain patients to know about such issues.
The Importance of Proper Treatment
The ability to swallow impacts your
quality of life. A variety of diseases and spinal conditions may be the source
of the swallowing trouble. Researchers are fine-tuning their evaluation of
patients with swallowing issues. (2) A recent study reported
that, lucky for these patients, those who have spine-related
dysphagia had better outcomes with treatment than patients whose
dysphagia was linked to other issues. (1) In
fact, a case report of a female patient who had both dysphagia and cervical
osteophytes, cervical kyphosis, and thoracolumar scoliosis was treated for 6 months
with chiropractic and reported relief of all issues including dyspagia. (3) In order for individuals with cervical
spine disorder-related dysphagia to again experience safe
eating habits, proper treatment is essential. Treatment at Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc
typically starts with a thorough examination to determine the underlying
cervical spine issue followed by a treatment plan incorporating
gentle spinal manipulation care (often in the form of Cox® Technic) and
exercises meant to improve strength and range of
motion in the neck muscles plus strategies to
swallow safely when eating. Electrical
stimulation has been found helpful in targeting
specific areas of weakness associated with impaired tongue
motion or jaw closure while also promoting increased blood flow throughout the
neck region. (4,5) Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc deliveres research based and
clinically experienced relieving treatment modalities along with chiropractic
spinal manipulation.
CONTACT Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc
There may not be a quick fix for
this problem—treatment typically takes some time—and with
patience and dedication you can get the results you want with
individualized care tailored specifically for your needs. Schedule
your Fort Wayne chiropractic appointment today.