Association between swallowing disorder and prevertebral hyperintensity on magnetic resonance imaging in patients after cervical cord injury without major fracture

This study investigates the link between swallowing difficulties and the appearance of bright areas in the neck on MRI scans of patients with spinal cord injuries but no major bone fractures. The goal was to see if these bright areas could help predict swallowing problems. The researchers measured the size of these bright areas on MRI scans and compared them to whether or not the patients had swallowing problems requiring feeding tubes. They found that larger bright areas were linked to a higher chance of swallowing difficulties. They determined a specific size for these bright areas that could be used as a cutoff point to help identify patients at risk for swallowing problems after this type of spinal cord injury.

• 1
  The incidence of swallowing disorders after CSCI in the absence of major fractures was 16.7%.
• 2
  The HIA was significantly higher in the swallowing disorder group (median, 409.0 mm2) than in the non- swallowing disorder group (median, 159.1 mm2) (P = .04).
• 3
  The optimal cutoff point of the HIA was measured at 203.2 mm2 with 80.0% and 20.0% sensitivity and specificity, respectively.