Management of Dysphagia in Neurodegenerative Disease

PurposeThe purpose of this review was to provide an overview of approaches to dysphagia management for patients with neurodegenerative disease.Recent FindingsRecent literature focused on dysphagia management for persons with neurodegenerative disease suggests implementation of a proactive, multidisciplinary approach to dysphagia evaluation and treatment tailored based on the specific neurodegenerative disease diagnosis. More research to determine the efficacy of interventions (compensatory and rehabilitative) has been conducted for certain disease groups (e.g., Parkinson's disease) than others (e.g., Alzheimer's disease). Generally, there is a need for more research focused on rehabilitative approaches to dysphagia treatment in neurodegenerative disease populations.This manuscript provides an overview of the research focused on dysphagia intervention approaches in Parkinson disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, Huntington's disease, and myasthenia gravis. Future research studies should determine best practice for dysphagia management in understudied neurodegenerative disease populations in order to guide clinical decision-making.