Many Sitka people suffering from neck pain, stiffness, or other degenerative cervical
spine disease conditions may be surprised to learn
how it might impact your swallowing ability.
Dysphagia is the technical term for swallowing problems.
While cervical spine conditions may have an impact on your pharynx
and its swallowing function, it is valuable to understand
just how and why this occurs. Let’s,
Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka and you, take a closer look at the connection between cervical spine
disorders and swallowing function.
The Link Between Cervical Spine Pain and Swallowing Function
The relationship between cervical spine pain conditions and
swallowing function involves both sensory and motor components.
When it comes to the sensory component, pain stemming
from the neck can hamper
your ability to sense what is in your mouth,
resulting in difficulty determining when to swallow
which can result in issues like choking
or coughing while eating. On the motor side of things, cervical
spine pain conditions might also interfere with your
ability to move food as it moves through your mouth
and throat by disturbing normal tongue, jaw, and
hyolaryngeal movements (the movement of the hyoid bone, the bone
that supports the tongue). Therefore, there may
be trouble clearing food debris from your mouth after each
bite or sip. Furthermore, cervical spine disorder has been linked to heightened risk of aspiration (inhaling food
particles) due to reduced laryngeal elevation that normally
occurs during swallowing. (1) Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka wants our Sitka
cervical spine pain patients to know about such issues.
The Importance of Proper Treatment
The ability to swallow affects your
quality of life. A variety of diseases and spinal conditions may be the source
of the swallowing trouble. Researchers are fine-tuning their evaluation of
patients with swallowing issues. (2) A recent study documented
that, fortunately for these patients, those who have spine-related
dysphagia had better outcomes with treatment than those whose
dysphagia was related to other issues. (1) As a matter of
fact, a case report of a female patient with
swallowing issues who also had cervical osteophytes, cervical kyphosis, and thoracolumar
scoliosis was treated for 6 months with chiropractic reported relief of all
issues including dysphagia. (3) In order for individuals with cervical
spine disorder-related dysphagia to return to safe
eating habits, proper treatment is essential. Treatment at Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka
typically involves a thorough examination to determine the underlying
cervical spine issue followed by a treatment plan incorporating
gentle spinal manipulation care (often in the form of Cox® Technic) and
exercises meant to increase strength and range of
motion in the neck muscles plus strategies for swallowing safety when eating. Electrical
stimulation has been reported helpful in targeting
specific areas of weakness related to impaired tongue
motion or jaw closure while also promoting increased blood flow throughout the
neck region. (4,5) Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka deliveres research based and
clinically experienced relieving treatment modalities along with chiropractic
spinal manipulation.
CONTACT Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka
There may not be a quick fix for
this problem—treatment typically takes several weeks—and with
patience and commitment you can get the results you want with
personalized care tailored specifically for your needs. Make
your Sitka chiropractic appointment today.