Assessment of the role and effectiveness of nurse-led multimodal intervention in the rehabilitation of dysphagia in patients with brain tumors.

Yaping Lu; Haifeng Wu

doi:10.1007/s00520-026-11203-x

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Assessment of the role and effectiveness of nurse-led multimodal intervention in the rehabilitation of dysphagia in patients with brain tumors.

Yaping Lu·Haifeng Wu

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Dysphagia is a common complication in patients with brain tumors, which has a profound adverse impact on patients' health status and quality of life. However, there is a relative lack of research on the rehabilitation of dysphagia in brain tumor patients, especially regarding the role and effectiveness of nurse-led multimodal interventions in the rehabilitation of dysphagia in brain tumor patients, which lacks systematic assessment and in-depth discussion. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the role and effectiveness of a nurse-led multimodal intervention in improving swallowing function and quality of life in brain tumor patients with dysphagia. METHODS: In this study, a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design was used to select 120 dysphagia patients among brain tumor patients admitted to our hospital during the period of January 2024 to May 2024 as the study subjects, and they were stratified and randomly divided into an intervention group (n = 60) and a control group (n = 60). While the control group received conventional nursing care and treatment protocols, the intervention group received a nurse-led multimodal intervention program, including personalized swallowing training, nutritional support, psychological care, and a family-participatory rehabilitation program, which was developed and dynamically adjusted by nurses, rehabilitation therapists, and dietitians. Differences in data before and after the intervention were analyzed using the paired t-test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and between-group comparisons were made using the independent samples t-test or Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: Both the intervention and control groups showed improvement in swallowing function among the patients. The Kubota drinking test score, Saito's swallowing function grading, and the quality of life scores for patients in the intervention group showed a significant enhancement compared to those in the control group (P < 0.05), indicating that the intervention was more effective than the control. When compared within groups, all scores in both the intervention and control groups improved gradually with the time of intervention (P < 0.05). The improvement was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that a nurse-led multimodal intervention is significantly effective in improving swallowing function and quality of life in patients with brain tumors. The intervention provides comprehensive rehabilitation support for patients through multidisciplinary collaboration and personalized care and has certain clinical promotion value.

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Humans Deglutition Disorders Female Quality of Life Brain Neoplasms Middle Aged Male Aged Adult Combined Modality Therapy Brain tumor Dysphagia Nursing care Rehabilitation Journal Article Randomized Controlled Trial

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Yaping Lu, Haifeng Wu. 2026-09-10. Assessment of the role and effectiveness of nurse-led multimodal intervention in the rehabilitation of dysphagia in patients with brain tumors.. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-026-11203-x

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Journal Article; Randomized Controlled Trial resource Adult subject Aged subject Brain Neoplasms subject Combined Modality Therapy subject Female subject Humans subject Journal Article subject Male subject Middle Aged subject Randomized controlled trials study dysphagia subject

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