Biomechanical Effects of EMST® on Swallowing Function in Parkinson's Disease

Biomechanical Effects of Expiratory Muscle Strength Training (EMST®) on Swallowing Function in Parkinson's Disease - a Prospective High-resolution Manometry Study

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT07606547

Enrollment

Registered

2026-05-26

Start date

2026-06-01

Completion date

2028-05-01

Last updated

2026-06-03

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Dysphagia, Parkinson's Disease (PD)

Keywords

Dysphagia, Expiratory muscle strength training, Parkinson's Disease, High-resolution pharyngeal manometry

Brief summary

The aim of this non-randomized intervention study is to investigate the detailed effects of a structured four-week EMST® training program on the biomechanics of swallowing function in dysphagic Parkinson's patients. A combination of fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) and pharyngeal high-resolution manometry (HRM) will be employed to comprehensively evaluate the neuromuscular changes in swallowing.

Interventions

DEVICEexspiratory muscle strength training

5 sets of 5 breaths with EMST per day, 5 days a week for 1 month

Study design

Allocation

Intervention model

SINGLE_GROUP

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, * PD-related dysphagia as objectively diagnosed with FEES

Exclusion criteria

* severe dementia, not able to give consent * dysphagia related to other diagnoses

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Effect on swallowing biomechanics in pharyngeal high-resolution manometry as assessed by measurement of e.g. Pharyngeal contractile Integral (PhcI)	1 month and 3 months	metrics of pharyngeal contraction and upper esophageal sphinkter opening in high-resolution pharyngeal manometry

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Pharyngeal swallowing safety and efficiency as assessed with fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) applying DIGEST-FEES scoring	1 month and 3 months	Assessment of Swallowing safety and efficiency with DIGEST-FEES (Dynamic Imaging Grade of Swallowing Toxicity - FEES), Range 0 (best) - 4 (worst)

Countries

Germany

Contacts

CONTACTSonja Suntrup-Krueger, Prof. Dr. med.

sonja.suntrup-krueger@ukmuenster.de+49251-83-46811

STUDY_CHAIRSonja Suntrup-Krueger, Prof. Dr. med.

University Hospital Münster, Department of Neurology, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, A1, 48149 Münster, Germany

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Jun 4, 2026