ArticleDysphagia2026
Effect of Swallowing Rehabilitative Therapies on Functional Outcomes and Quality of Life in Head and Neck Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Article in Dysphagia, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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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.
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.
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Swallowing rehabilitative therapies are widely used to manage impairments in head and neck cancer (HNC), but their pooled effects outcomes have not been established. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of swallowing rehabilitative therapies on functional outcomes and quality of life (QoL) in HNC patients. We searched six databases from inception through December 2024, with no restrictions on date, region, or language. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were eligible. Functional outcomes comprised swallowing function, aspiration/penetration, oral intake, mouth opening, and pain, whereas QoL was assessed overall and across its domains. Pooled effect sizes were estimated using Hedges' g with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) under a random-effects model, where values of approximately 0.20, 0.50, and 0.80 denoted small, moderate, and large effects, respectively. Heterogeneity, publication bias, and moderator analyses were performed. Thirty-one RCTs involving 2,038 HNC patients (men: 68.11%) were included. The therapies exerted moderate to small effects on swallowing function (g: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.30, 1.08), aspiration/penetration (g: -0.21; -0.40, -0.02), oral intake (g: 0.39; 0.07 to 0.71), and mouth opening (g: 0.44; 0.30, 0.58), a large effect on pain (g: -0.93; -1.48, -0.38), and a moderate to small effect on overall QoL (g: 0.43; 0.15, 0.72). Moderator analyses among subgroup comparisons only oral intake showed significantly larger effects with longer (>8 weeks; p = 0.038) and more frequent (>70 sessions; p = 0.025) programs. HNC patients may benefit from tailored, sustained, and frequent swallowing rehabilitation as part of long-term supportive care.
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Registered trials
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.