Sour Taste and Cold Temperature in Dysphagia

Over the past decade there were many studies over normal and pathological swallowing that discuss the influence of taste and temperature. Nevertheless there were many questions on the issue that remains to be solved, including the hemispheric lateralization of lesions dysphagic patients remains also to be fully understood.Swallowing disorder is defined as oropharyngeal dysphagia in presence of alterations in any phase of the complex swallowing dynamics. It could be congenital or acquired, affecting nutritional aspects, hydration, lung function and the individual's social integration [1]. Stroke, has a high incidence among neurological diseases, and cause disturbs on swallowing dynamics presenting signs of dysphagia in at least 50% of cases.A study that analyzed swallowing dynamics by videofluoroscopy in individuals with history of one or more stroke episodes with oropharyngeal dysphagia shows shorter pharyngeal and oropharyngeal transit times with cold stimulus than without them. Other study of heterogeneous neurological diseases such as cerebral palsy, brain trauma, stroke, and Alzheimer's disease, concluded that sour taste improved swallowing, minimizing laryngotracheal penetration and aspiration in individuals with neurological damaged. Chen et al. in an analysis of 42 healthy individuals with several taste bolus found that awareness and arousal could also influence the swallowing function.