This systematic review explores the effects of dysphagia treatment for Parkinson’s disease. The review includes rehabilitative,
surgical, pharmacologic, and other treatments. Only oropharyngeal dysphagia is selected for this literature search, excluding
dysphagia due to esophageal or gastric disorders. The effects of deep brain stimulation on dysphagia are not included. In
general, the literature concerning dysphagia treatment in Parkinson’s disease is rather limited. Most effect studies show
diverse methodologic problems. Multiple case studies and trials are identified by searching biomedical literature databases
PubMed and Embase, and by hand-searching reference lists. The conclusions of most studies cannot be compared with one another
because of heterogeneous therapy methods and outcome measures. Further research based on randomized controlled trials to determine
the effectiveness of different therapies for dysphagia in Parkinson’s disease is required.
Keywords Systematic review - Dysphagia - Swallowing disorder - Deglutition - Parkinson’s disease - Therapy effect - Therapy outcome - Deglutition disorders