Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33452920›Full record

ArticleEuropean archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery2021

Dysphagia, voice problems, and pain in head and neck cancer patients.

Veit Zebralla, Gunnar Wichmann, Markus Pirlich, Carola Hammermüller, Thomas Berger, Klara Zimmermann, Thomas Neumuth, Anja Mehnert-Theuerkauf, Andreas Dietz, Andreas Hinz and 1 more

Open access · hybridAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
26citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
10.8field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 53 citations in OpenAlex.

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  13. Evaluating Effective Feeding Methods for Nutritional Management in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Post-Surgery: A Systematic Review.ORL-head and neck nursing : official journal of the Society of Otorhinolaryngology and Head-Neck Nurses · 2025
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  19. Exploring predictors of dysphagia in survivors of head and neck cancer: A cross-sectional study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2024
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Veit ZebrallaDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany. Veit.zebralla@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5519-7566
Gunnar WichmannDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Markus PirlichDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Carola HammermüllerDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Thomas BergerDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Klara ZimmermannDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Thomas NeumuthInnovation Center Computer Assisted Surgery (ICCAS), University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Anja Mehnert-TheuerkaufDepartment of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Andreas DietzDepartment of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Andreas Hinz *Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Susanne Wiegand *Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Clinic of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
University Hospital Leipzig · DELeipzig University · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeHead and neck cancer (HNC) and its treatment can leave devastating side effects with a relevant impact on physical and emotional quality of life (QoL) of HNC patients. The objectives were to examine the amount of dysphagia, voice problems, and pain in HNC patients, the impact of sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical factors on these symptoms, the psychometric properties of the EAT-10, and the relationship between these symptoms and QoL variables.

methodsHNC patients attending for regular follow-up from 07/2013 to 09/2019 completed questionnaires (Eating Assessment Tool-10 (EAT-10); questions from the EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC H&N35) on dysphagia, voice problems, pain, fatigue, and QoL collected with the software OncoFunction. Associations between prognostic factors and symptoms were tested with analyses of variance (ANOVAs). Associations between the symptom scales and QoL variables were expressed with Pearson correlations.

resultsOf 689 patients, 54.9% suffered from dysphagia, the EAT-10 proved to be a reliable measure. The mean voice score was 37.6 (± 33.9) [range 0-100], the mean pain score 1.98 (± 2.24) [range 0-10]. Trimodality treatment was associated with the highest dysphagia scores. Dysphagia, voice problems, and pain significantly correlated with each other, the highest association was found for dysphagia and pain (r = 0.51). QoL was strongly correlated with dysphagia and pain (r = - 0.39 and r = - 0.40, respectively), while the association with voice problems was weaker (r = - 0.28).

conclusionDysphagia is an important symptom in HNC patients greatly affecting patients' QoL and significantly correlating with voice problems and pain.

Indexed as

Deglutition DisordersHead and Neck NeoplasmsVoice DisordersHumansPainQuality of LifeSurveys and QuestionnairesCancer painDysphagiaHead and neck cancerSymptom burdenVoice impairment

Identifiers

PMID33452920
PMCPMC8382612
OpenAlexW3123055464

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.