What are the steps of the swallowing reflex?
Anatomically, swallowing has been divided into three phases: oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal.
What are the 4 phases of swallowing?
Normal swallowing can be divided into four stages, the oral preparatory stage, the oral stage, pharyngeal stage and esophageal stage.
What triggers the swallowing reflex?
The reflex is initiated by touch receptors in the pharynx as a bolus of food is pushed to the back of the mouth by the tongue, or by stimulation of the palate (palatal reflex). Swallowing is a complex mechanism using both skeletal muscle (tongue) and smooth muscles of the pharynx and esophagus.
What is the purpose of the swallow reflex?
Swallowing reflex serves as a defensive airway reflex. Any procedures that disturb the coordination of respiration and swallowing may increase the chance of pulmonary aspiration.
Is swallowing an autonomic reflex?
Swallowing is the mechanism by which food is transported from the mouth to the stomach. Part of the mechanism is under active control while the rest is under autonomic control.
What occurs during swallowing?
swallowing, also called Deglutition, the act of passing food from the mouth, by way of the pharynx (or throat) and esophagus, to the stomach. The tongue rolls backward, propelling food into the oral pharynx, a chamber behind the mouth that functions to transport food and air.
What is the motion of swallowing called?
Swallowing, or deglutition, is a complex reflex mechanism by which food is pushed from the oral cavity into the esophagus and then pushed to the stomach. This movement of food from the oral cavity on to the esophagus and stomach by pushing is called propulsion, and it is an important part of the digestive process.
What are the swallowing muscles?
These muscles include the omohyoid, sternohyoid, and sternothyroid muscles (ansa cervicalis), and the thyrohyoid muscle (CN XII). [17] The longitudinal pharyngeal muscles function to condense and expand the pharynx as well as help elevate the pharynx and larynx during swallowing.
Is swallowing automatic?
In healthy normal individuals, the act of swallowing can be performed volitionally or can occur spontaneously. However, an automatic or spontaneous swallow (AS) is defined to be a reflexive swallow, which usually involves swallowing of saliva.
What is the first phase of swallowing?
Swallowing starts with the oral phase. This phase begins when food is placed in the mouth and moistened with saliva. Moistened food is called a food bolus. The food bolus is voluntarily chewed with the teeth that are controlled by the muscles of mastication (chewing).
What are the three parts of the swallowing reflex?
The swallowing reflex consists of afferent pathways, central integration, and efferent pathways. Any defect or disorder along reflex arc can cause a potential delay or impairment in swallow function.
What is the pathophysiology of the swallowing reflex?
Abstract. The swallowing reflex consists of afferent pathways, central integration, and efferent pathways. Any defect or disorder along reflex arc can cause a potential delay or impairment in swallow function. The swallowing reflex can be modulated not only by pathological factors but also by physiological factors.
Is the swallowing reflex an airway defensive reflex?
Like cough reflex, swallowing reflex has an obvious protective value against the aspiration of foreign materials into the respiratory tract (Nishino, 1993). The purpose of this paper is to discuss physiological and clinical factors that influence the swallowing reflex as an airway defensive reflex.
What is the neural organization of the swallowing reflex?
Neural organization of the swallowing. The reflex control system of swallowing consists of afferent, central, and efferent components, and the integrity of the reflex control system seems to contribute to the prevention of pulmonary aspiration.