Dysphagia in Induced Parkinson's Disease

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Parkinson's Disease occurs with high incidence in the elderly (Kondziolka et al., 1999; Shulz and Grant, 2000). Dysphagia, abnormal swallowing, is a significant component of Parkinson's disease (Basset, 1999; Bushman et al., 1989; Nagaya et al., 1998; Logemann, 1998; Potulska et al., 1999), impacting on nutrition, quality of life, and most significantly, airway protection. Given the inevitable restrictions on the acquisition of human dysfunction data, there are limited data on the quantitative kinematics of swallowing in patients with Parkinson's Disease (e.g. Wintzen et al., 1994). Synchronous electromyographic data from the muscles critical for normal deglutition, while essential for characterizing the motor patterns, and ultimately the neural control of swallowing, are virtually impossible to collect from either normal or Parkinsonian human subjects. Over the last 20 years, our research group has developed extensive expertise in analyzing the kinematics and motor pattern of oral and pharyngeal function in animal models with the ultimate goal of a better understanding of human dysfunction. The recent development of a chemically induced model of Parkinson's Disease in pigs presents an obvious opportunity for us to bring our methods and experience to bear on the feeding problems associated with this disease entity. The aim of this study is to collect preliminary data, in the pig model of Parkinson's Disease, to establish the extent of dysfunction in the different phases of swallowing by comparing them with our extensive control data on normal function. We will use our proven techniques of synchronized videoradiography and electromyography to establish the utility of this model. Our ultimate goal is to use these data for the development of an R01 proposal aimed at the systematic characterization of the Parkinsonian disruption of normal oral and pharyngeal swallowing function.