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Introduction: Pharyngeal residue, defined as the material remaining in the pharynx post-swallow, is a sign of swallowing biomechanical impairment and a clinical predictor of aspiration. This study investigates the correlation between pharyngeal residue severity using the Mansoura FEES Residue Rating Scale (MFRRS) and penetration/aspiration scores using the penetration-aspiration scale (PAS) on FEES., Methods: Two hundred ten (210) swallows were obtained during standard FEES assessments of thirty patients with poststroke dysphagia. Residue, in both vallecula and the pyriform sinuses' locations, and penetration/aspiration were scored using MFRRS and PAS, respectively. The Spearman's rank-order correlation was used to assess the correlation between residue and PAS scores. The significance of the obtained results was judged at the (p < 0.05) level., Results: Significant strong positive correlations were demonstrated between PAS scores and each vallecular residue score (rs = 0.663, p = 0.000) and pyriform residue score (rs = 0.688, p = 0.001)., Conclusion: There is a significant strong positive correlation between residue severity and penetration/aspiration in each anatomical site evaluated (valleculae and pyriform sinuses). Our results do not designate one site as riskier than the other because either can contribute to aspiration, but rather demonstrate penetration/aspiration to better correlate with the overall severity of the residue, perhaps as a better marker for pharyngeal inefficiency. This study offers insight into the association of residue severity with swallowing safety and efficiency., (© 2022 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Objective: The aim of this work was to design an anatomically based scale for judging post-swallow residue in the pharyngeal cavities, for use during the fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) in patients with dysphagia, and to assess its feasibility., Methods: Two 7-point ordinal scales (one for vallecular residue and one for pyriform sinus residue), were developed using detailed anatomic landmarks to denote residue levels. Hard copy color images of a specified frame, from 210 videos of 30 adult FEES evaluations demonstrating the range of all possible residue patterns, were selected (n = 56 valleculae, 62 pyriform sinuses). Half of these images were used to train 4 raters. The remaining half of the images were randomly ordered and rated by the trained raters. Two weeks later the same images were randomized again, and each rater re-analyzed them. The inter- and intra-rater reliability and criterion validity were determined using the kappa statistics and their standard errors. The internal consistency of the items in MFRRS was examined., Results: MFRRS showed strong inter-rater reliability (valleculae, κ = 0.832 ± 0.038; pyriform sinus, κ = 0.855 ± 0.034), almost perfect intra-rater reliability (valleculae, κ = 0.964 ± 0.018; pyriform sinus, κ = 0.962 ± 0.02), almost perfect concurrent validity (valleculae, κ = 0.968 ± 0.020; pyriform sinus, κ = 0.0971 ± 0.017), and excellent internal consistency (valleculae, Cronbach's α = 0.990; pyriform sinus, Cronbach's α = 0.985)., Conclusion: MFRRS is a feasible and reliable, anatomically based tool that can provide more accurate pharyngeal residue judgments. The optimized description of residue accumulation patterns can contribute to a better overall description of the functional problem and future description of dysphagia phenotypes., (© 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Aim: To develop a time-efficient Arabic test battery for adult-onset chronic aphasia that provides information about the type and the severity of the disorder., Patient and Methods: A total of 90 participants were recruited and divided into 3 groups. The groups consisted of 30 adult-onset post-stroke chronic aphasic patients, 30 adult non-aphasic adults with central neurological disorders, and a group of 30 non-brain-damaged healthy adults. All participants were assessed using the Mansoura Arabic Screening Aphasia Test (MASAT), which consists of 4 main sections: (1) language expression abilities including repetition and naming items, (2) language comprehension questions, (3) fluency, and (4) reading, writing and calculation items. The content validity, internal consistency, clinical validity, and convergent validity of the MASAT were evaluated., Results: The MASAT demonstrated statistically high reliability and validity. The high α-values in all subtotal scores among the 3 groups were judged to denote excellent intercorrelation among the screening test items., Conclusion: The MASAT is a valid and a reliable brief assessment tool that can be completed on the first clinic appointment that detects the type and severity of Arabic-speaking aphasic patients., (© 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop a low-cost methodology for preparing different thickened liquids with different consistencies and viscosities that mimic the viscosities of culturally relevant traditional Egyptian liquids, which can be easily used in the fiberoptic-endoscopic evaluation of swallowing., Materials and Methods: The textures of 9 traditional Egyptian liquids were quantified with the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) Flow Test and spanned the entire range of the IDDSI scale. We then developed texture-modified fluids that matched each dietary fluid texture for endoscopic dysphagia assessment using a regionally available, inexpensive, starch-based thickening agent., Results: Our results indicate simple methods of assuring that fluids used during swallowing testing with endoscopy can be matched to dietary fluids to ensure appropriate dietary prescriptions for people with dysphagia. The changes in the thickness and viscosity of the prepared liquid samples were detected and studied separately. The measured samples include some traditional Egyptian fluids (molokhia, lentil soup) in addition to commercially available fluids and pudding., Conclusion: The method can be applied to develop thickened liquids with different consistencies to model the traditional, naturally thickened liquids in Egypt and many other developing countries., (© 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to collect the normative values of nasalance for Egyptian Arabic speakers in different age groups, using Arabic speech samples in order to compare patients with disturbed nasality., Material and Methods: This study included 300 normal Egyptian volunteers divided into three groups according to their ages: group I = children (n = 92; age 3 years, 3 months to 9 years), group II = teenagers (n = 76; age 9-18 years) and group III = adults (n = 132; age above 18 years). The Nasometer II 6400 was used for the analysis of speech samples. All subjects were asked to perform four speech tasks that were based on the MacKay-Kummer SNAP Test-R and modified to be applicable to the Arabic language, especially to the Egyptian dialect., Results: The normative values for nasometric assessment in the different age groups were studied. The results demonstrated nasalance score variations according to age and gender. Most of the nasalance score norms of the Egyptian children demonstrated statistically significant differences when compared with the norms of children for the MacKay-Kummer Test-R., Conclusion: The Egyptian Arabic SNAP test is an easy, noninvasive and objective procedure that is suitable for all age groups., (Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to develop an Arabic articulation test using familiar and visually transparent words in order to be used as a criterion for comparing phonemes of both normal and phonologically disordered Arabic-speaking children., Material and Methods: A picture-naming test was designed for the Mansoura Arabic Articulation Test (MAAT) to elicit spontaneous single-word responses representing all possible consonant positions and vowels of Colloquial Egyptian Arabic. Three expert phoniatricians were asked to review MAAT and complete a questionnaire. The MAAT was presented to 100 normal Arabic-speaking Egyptian children randomly selected from the first- and second-grade kindergarten. They were 52 males and 48 females with ages ranging between 42 and 70 months. Children's responses were converted to a percent correct score for sound utterances and picture identification., Results: Statistically non-significant differences were found among experts' opinions reflecting approval for the MAAT items. A statistically highly significant adequate correlation was found between correct word utterances and picture identification which proved the content validity of MAAT. Test-retest reliability proved the consistency of MAAT., Conclusion: MAAT is a valid and reliable test that can be applied to collect the phonetic inventory of Arabic-speaking young children.