The cause of drooling in children with cerebral palsy – hypersalivation or swallowing defect?

Abstract

Children with cerebral palsy who drool do not appear to produce excess saliva. Their salivation is similar to the control children.

Drooling quantification: Correlation of different techniques

“…Sochaniwsky et al (1982) introduced a cup-like collection device held against the chin with straps attached on the orthodontic head bonnet; the saliva collected is then suctioned from the cup in to a calibrated test tube where it would be measured. However, the occurrence of leakages makes the measurements inaccurate (Reid et al, 2010;Sochaniwskyj, 1982;Tahmassebi & Curzon, 2003).…”

“…Drooled saliva was suctioned from the cup into a calibrated test tube where it would be measured. However, leakage is a major disadvantage in all methods using collection devices (Reid et al, 2010;Tahmassebi & Curzon, 2003).…”

Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in Children

“…32,33 Drooling is secondary to impaired volitional movements whereas posterior salivation causes recurrent aspiration and subsequent pulmonary infections. 34 Other common static conditions include Arnold-Chiari and central arteriovenous malformations, which may be present with only subtle clinical evidence of OPD. A high index of suspicion for OPD is necessary in these patients.…”

Clinical practice

“…Drooling is caused by the swallowing disorder and occurs in 10–58% of children with CP [11, 44, 46]. From a clinical point of view, it makes sense to distinguish between “anterior” and “posterior” drooling.…”