In the original 2019 Reference Values publication, we reported on the following parameters, which are no longer part of the ASPEKT Method:
- Bolus Location at Swallow Onset
- Bolus Location at Laryngeal Vestibule Closure
- These parameters were found to vary widely across healthy individuals and are not considered informative in terms of swallowing pathophysiology.
- The Normalized Residue Ratio Scale (Pearson et al. , 2013).
- The Normalized Residue Ratio Scale (NRRS) expresses residue as a percent of housing area (either the valleculae or pyriform sinuses), as viewed on a lateral view videofluoroscopic image, and normalizes this ratio to a cervical spine scalar. As discussed in a subsequent publication, the estimate of spatial housing area used in the NRRS is questionably valid. Instead, the ASPEKT Method reports residue in %(C2-4)2 units. This approach has the added benefit of enabling the summation of total pharyngeal residue by adding together residue measurements from the valleculae, pyriform sinuses and elsewhere in the pharynx.
Next: Why is it important to compare patient values to healthy reference values?
Updated January 3, 2023