Swallowing therapy in adults.

Swallowing therapy can in many cases eliminate, and in nearly all cases, improve swallowing difficulty in adults. A wide variety of faciliatory and compensatory techniques are available to therapists who must be specially trained in such methods. In addition, swallowing therapy cannot be thought of as a series of "lessons" for a patient, but rather a management strategy using a multidisciplinary team, including the family of the patient. Efficacy studies are becoming available to evaluate the effectiveness of the many therapy methods available, and new techniques are constantly being developed and tested. The outlook for most adults with swallowing problems is thus optimistic for improvement.