The influence of bolus consistency on pharyngeal swallow was radiologically studied in 24 individuals by comparing liquid barium and solid meat after chewing. Pharyngeal function was apparently performed synchronously and symmetrically on both boluses. No definite conclusion about the influence on epiglottic mobility, closure of the laryngeal vestibule and relaxation of the cricopharyngeal muscle could be drawn from this study. There was no difference in the elevation of the pharynx and larynx. The transit time for a solid bolus was shorter compared with that of a fluid bolus. The transit time for the apex of the bolus was shorter than for the tail. A more marked elevation of the pharynx and larynx was followed by a shorter transit time. The width of the pharyngo-esophageal segment was larger in the transverse than in the sagittal diameter during the passage of the bolus and larger on solid compared with fluid swallow. Our results reflect the ability of pharyngeal swallow to be executed with precision and with few alterations due to variable bolus consistency.

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PubMedDate not supplied

Precision attachment-retained removable partial dentures. Part 3. General practitioner results up to 2 years.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to analyze the techniques, production problems, and 2-year results of attachment-retained removable partial denture (RPD) treatment provided by general practitioners in Sweden. MATERIALS AND METHODS: At a major dental laboratory, consecutive cases involving new production of crowns, or of fixed partial dentures (FPDs) and RPDs retained with precision attachments, were studied. Parameters of the dentition, crown or FPD, type and brand of attachment, etc, as well as early satisfaction by dentist and patient, were recorded using specially designed forms at the dental laboratory and questionnaires for the dentists. After 2 years, questionnaires were again sent out to the dentists to record complications and patients' and dentists' opinions of the results. The sample gathered totaled 83 constructions. After 2 years, responses for 57 patients, all of whom had distal-extension RPDs, were received. Most drop-outs in the study were explicable. RESULTS: The most frequently cited reasons for using attachments were esthetics and need for crowning the teeth abutting the RPD. McCollum rigid slide attachment was the predominant brand used (43% of constructions). Dentists and patients were dissatisfied with 6% of the constructions. During the first 2 years, 22 of 57 constructions were complication-free. Seventeen had attachment complications and 9 had serious complications related to the abutment teeth or RPDs. A comparison between these 2 groups revealed that those with complications had every second abutment root-canal treated and a root post, while the group without complications had every fifth abutment root-canal treated. CONCLUSION: There were many technical and biotechnical complications and failures; the exact ratio, however, depended on the definition of "complications" and "failure." The 2-year results also deviated considerably from the dentists' opinions of the early results.

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