Tongue pressure production against hard palate during supraglottic swallow and super supraglottic swallow

Introduction: Supraglottic swallow (SS) and super supraglottic swallow (SSS) are voluntary airway protection techniques which are widely used in the rehabilitation of patients with dysphagia. Although there have been some reports about the effect of these techniques on the pharyngeal stage of swallowing, little is known about that on the oral stage. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of SS and SSS on the state of tongue-palate contact by measuring tongue pressure production against hard palate. Materials and Methods: Nineteen healthy adults (six males and thirteen females, average age; 25.9 years) participated in this study. Tongue pressure during swallowing 5 ml water with normal swallow, SS and SSS was measured by using an ultra-thin tongue pressure sensor sheet with 5 pressure-sensing points attached to the hard palate. Maximal magnitude, duration and integrated value of tongue pressure were analyzed based on the tongue pressure waveform obtained. Results and Discussion: Maximal magnitude and integrated values during SS were higher at posterior part of the hard palate than those during normal swallow, and those during SSS were higher at each part of the hard palate than those during normal swallow. In addition, those during SSS were higher at anterior-median part and posterior circumferential part of the hard palate than those during SS. These results suggest that SS and SSS facilitated tongue-palate contact which might improve bolus driving force in the oral stage. SSS was more effective than SS in this respect

Utilization of prickly pear waste for baker's yeast production

The feasibility of baker's yeast production using fruits and peels of Opuntia ficus indica (OFI) as carbohydrate feedstock was investigated. Two response surface methodologies involving central composite face centered design (CCFD) were successfully applied. The effects of four independent variables on baker's yeast production from OFI fruit juice was evaluated using the first CCFD. The best results were obtained with 24 H of inoculum age, 30 degrees C temperature, 200 rpm of agitation, and 10% inoculum size. At the maximum point, the biomass concentration reached 9.29 g/L. A second CCFD was performed to optimize the sugar extraction from OFI fruit peels. The potential of these latter as a fermentation substrate was determined. From the experimental results, the OFI fruit peel is an appropriate carbon source for the production of baker's yeast. The maximum biomass concentration was 12.51 g/L. Different nitrogen supplements were added to promote the yields of baker's yeast. Corn steep liquor was found to be the best alternative nutrient source of casein hydrolysate and yeast extract for baker's yeast production.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Impact of lingual plates on the interocclusal free way space: a pilot study

Palatal augmentation prostheses are commonly used in the treatment for dysphagia. By lowering the palatal contours, the tongue contact is increased and thus the bolus propulsion facilitated. However, the unfavourable weight of such appliances may be avoided when using lingual plates. Hence, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of two different types of lingual plates on the vertical dimension in rest position. Eleven healthy dentate subjects with an average age of 35.5 years (26-60 years) volunteered in this pilot study. The vertical overbites were measured on plaster models. Two different designs of the experimental lingual plates were tested in this pilot study (P-type & D-type). The inter-occlusal freeway space was measured using the electromagnetic K7 jaw-tracking system (Myotronics, U.S.A.), while the subjects were seated in an upright position. They were asked to close from rest position into maximum intercuspation for about 2 s. Recordings were performed without the plates and subsequently with each of the two plate designs in situ. All recordings were performed three times and the second closing movement of each recording was used for the analysis. After averaging the repetitions without experimental lingual plates, with P-type and D-type plates, the differences were analysed using a Kruskall-Wallis test. The results showed no significantly increased freeway space while using both types of lingual plates. Hence, it can be concluded that any altered tongue pressure during swallowing with lingual plates is not related to an increase in vertical dimension