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Cortical Activation of Swallowing Using fNIRS: A Proof of Concept Study with Healthy Adults

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) could reliably identify cortical activation patterns as healthy adults engaged in single sip and continuous swallowing tasks. Thirty-three right-handed adults completed two functional swallowing tasks, one control jaw movement task, and one rest task while being imaged with fNIRS. Swallowing tasks included a single sip of 5 mL of water via syringe and continuous straw drinking. fNIRS patches for acquisition of neuroimaging data were placed parallel over left and right hemispheres. Stimuli presentation was controlled with set time intervals and audio instructions. Using a series of linear mixed effect models, results demonstrated clear cortical activation patterns during swallowing. The continuous swallowing task demonstrated significant differences in blood oxygenation and deoxygenation concentration values across nearly all regions examined, but most notably M1 in both hemispheres. Of note is that there were areas of greater activation, particularly on the right hemisphere, when comparing the single sip swallow to the jaw movement control and rest tasks. Results from the current study support the use of fNIRS during investigation of swallowing. The utilization of healthy adults as a method for acquiring normative data is vital for comparison purposes when investigating individuals with disorders, but also in the development of rehabilitation techniques. Identifying activation areas that pertain to swallowing will have important implications for individuals requiring dysphagia therapy.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to Andrea Seagren, Katelin Pyfer, Travis Clark, Josie Givens, and Sage Rowley for their work as research assistants.

Funding

This study was funded by the Utah State University Research Catalyst program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Missouri, 701 S. 5th Street, 308 Lewis Hall, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Stephanie M. Knollhoff

  2. Department of Psychology, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA

    Allison S. Hancock & Tyson S. Barrett

  3. Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA

    Ronald B. Gillam

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  1. Stephanie M. Knollhoff
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Correspondence to Stephanie M. Knollhoff.

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Dr. Stephanie Knollhoff was previously employed by Utah State University during the time of data collection.

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Knollhoff, S.M., Hancock, A.S., Barrett, T.S. et al. Cortical Activation of Swallowing Using fNIRS: A Proof of Concept Study with Healthy Adults. Dysphagia 37, 1501–1510 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00455-021-10403-3

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