Treatment Approaches to Upper Esophageal Sphincter Disorders

Presented by Michael Groher

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This course will be retired and no longer available as of December 31, 2024. Please complete the course by December 31, 2024, to receive credit.

Video Runtime: 61 Minutes; Learning Assessment Time: 23 Minutes

This course provides rationales, use cases, and indications for a variety of treatment options for disorders of the esophageal sphincter. Traditional behavioral treatments that are available to speech language pathologists are covered, in addition to available medical treatments. Treatment options include biofeedback, dilation, botulinum, injections, and myotomy. Upon completing this course, the participant should be able to distinguish between patients who require intervention from a speech language pathologist, and/or the intervention of a medical specialist. The course concludes with an interactive activity testing the clinical reasoning of the participant. This is the fourth course in a four course series by Dr. Groher. Please make sure to watch:

Disorders of the Esophagus for the Speech-Language Pathologist
Pharyngo-Esophageal Relationships

Meet your instructor

Michael Groher

Michael Groher is an emeritus professor of the Department of Communicative Disorders at the University of Redlands in Redlands, California. Dr. Groher has spent most of his career working as a medical speech pathologist in acute and long-term care settings. The majority of his hospital work was done for the Department of…

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Chapters & learning objectives

Behavioral Treatments

1. Behavioral Treatments

In this chapter, Dr. Groher introduces participants to behavioral treatments for poor hyoid mechanics, including the hard swallow, Mendelsohn’s maneuver, and the Shaker Maneuver. Participants will learn how prepare a patient for therapy, the importance of biofeedback for motor learning unfamiliar movements, and other exercise treatments.

Medical Treatments

2. Medical Treatments

This chapter differentiates between the various types, and indications for, treating disorders of the esophageal sphincter, with a focus on medical treatments. Participants of this course will learn to distinguish between those patients who might require the interventions of a speech-language pathologist and those who might require interventions of a medical specialist.

Treatment Approaches Case Study

3. Treatment Approaches Case Study

Dr. Groher presents the case study of a 69-year-old female with a history of a brainstem stroke, Wallenberg’s syndrome and dysphagia. Test your knowledge gained from the course as you work your way through this interactive learning activity. Remember to download the worksheet and pause the video to record your answers.

Question and Answer

4. Question and Answer

Dr. Groher discusses treatment approaches to UES disorder with speech-language pathologist Dr. Robert M. Miller.