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Understanding Psycho-Behavioral Antecedents for SINGS - a Song-Based Intervention for Neuromusculature in the Geriatric Swallow
Bird, Cole L.
Bird, Cole L.
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Abstract
Introduction: Dysphagia, or difficulty swallowing, significantly impacts the health of older adults, causing risks such as aspiration pneumonia, malnutrition, dehydration, and diminished quality of life. Traditional therapeutic interventions suffer from low patient adherence, emphasizing the need for innovative, patient-centered methods like song-based therapies. This study investigates attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors toward traditional and song-based dysphagia treatments among older adults with and without swallowing dysfunction.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to 179 older adults recruited via the Prolific online platform, including individuals with self-reported swallowing dysfunction (Swallow Dysfunction group, DYS) and age-matched controls. Participants completed comprehensive questionnaires covering demographics, Eating Assessment Tool-10 (EAT-10), frailty index, technology usage, healthcare behaviors, and therapy preferences. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests, and stepwise linear regression modeling to identify predictors of dysphagia severity.
Results: The DYS exhibited significantly higher rates of neurologic and respiratory comorbidities, increased frailty, and greater healthcare utilization compared to Controls. Both groups demonstrated high familiarity and acceptance of technology-based healthcare interventions, with favorable attitudes toward tablet and smartphone usage for therapeutic purposes. Participants expressed a clear preference for flexible, technology-driven interventions and demonstrated openness to song-based therapy, highlighting the opportunity to enhance therapeutic engagement through tailored education and practical demonstrations of effectiveness. Regression modeling identified frailty, age, group membership, self-reported dysphagia status, and race as significant predictors of dysphagia severity, collectively accounting for 62% of variability in EAT-10 scores, notably indicating younger participants reported more severe symptoms.
Conclusion: These findings highlight the feasibility and potential effectiveness of integrating patient-preferred digital platforms and targeted educational strategies into dysphagia management. Song-based therapies offer promising avenues to improve patient engagement and adherence, with further development and validation warranted.
Keywords: Dysphagia, older adults, swallowing disorders, song-based therapy, technology acceptance, patient adherence
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Date
2025-01-01
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University of Kansas
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This item contains archived web content.
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Bird_ku_0099M_20004.pdf
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- Embargoed until 2176-05-31
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Keywords
Medicine, Dysphagia, older adults, patient adherence, song-based therapy, swallowing disorders, technology acceptance