Auscultation of swallowing sounds of children with bronchiolitis

A retrospective study was performed by database analysis approved by the ERC under the number 1499.911; the acoustic signals were collected through Littmann® model 4100 electronic stethoscopes. The sample was composed of a bank of infants swallowing sounds, diagnosed with acute viral bronchiolitis, children under 12 months-old, hospitalized in a children's hospital in the south of the Country. The sound file storage was opened, and it was rotated in the Deglutisom® software, being verified and confirmed by two independent judges. The peak of frequency, intensity, and swallowing intervals were established.

Results

The sample totalized a group of 22 babies, 31.8% of the female gender, and 68. 2% of males with a median age of 81 days. There was a difference between the acoustic characteristics of swallowing compared to the gender, regarding the number of swallows, with the highest number of swallows in the female gender (p=0.033). There was no association between the peak frequency (m=744 Hz), intensity (m=52 dB), and swallowing time (5.3s).

Conclusion

The acoustic characteristics of cervical auscultation swallowing of Infants with bronchiolitis are bass frequency peak, a strong intensity, a mean of two swallows, and a swallowing time of 5.3 s, with the difference between genders concerning the number of swallows, highest in the female.

Keywords:
Auscultation; Acoustics; Swallowing; Swallowing disorders, Bronchiolitis

Variables	n=22
Variables	average	± SD
Peak swallowing frequency in Hz	744	± 146
Swallowing intensity in dB	52.0	± 24.1
Number of swallows - md (P25 - P75)	2 (1-4)
Swallowing duration in s	5.3	± 2.7

Variables	female gender (n=7)		Male gender (n=15)		p-value
Variables	Average	± SD	Average	± SD	p-value
Peak swallowing frequency in Hz	708	± 107	761	± 161	0.442
Swallowing intensity in dB	50.2	± 19.1	52.5	± 26.7	0.842
Swallowing duration in s	5.2	± 2.9	5.4	± 2.8	0.903
Number of swallows - md (P25 - P75)	4 (2-4)		1 (1-3)		0.033^* * Statistically significant values (p≤0.05) - Student's t-test

Variables	Age md = 81 days
Variables	Correction value; P value
Peak swallowing frequency in Hz	r_s=-0.209; p=0.350
Swallowing intensity in dB	r_s=-0.020; p=0.928
Number of swallows (md)	r_s=0.184; p=0.413
Swallowing duration in s	r_s=-0.140; p=0.533

Associations	Correction value; P value
Peak frequency X intensity averages	r=-0.035; p=0.876
Average peak frequency X md of the number of swallows	r_s=-0.005; p=0.981
Peak frequency averages vs. swallowing duration	r=-0.203; p=0.364
Intensity averages X md No. of swallows	r_s=-0.123; p=0.585
Means of intensity vs. duration of swallowing	r=-0.171; p=0.447
Md of the number of swallows X duration of swallowing	r_s=-0.158; p=0.482

Academia Brasileira de Audiologia Rua Itapeva, 202, conjunto 61, CEP 01332-000, Tel.: (11) 3253-8711, Fax: (11) 3253-8473 - São Paulo - SP - Brazil
E-mail: revista@audiologiabrasil.org.br

Acompanhe os números deste periódico no seu leitor de RSS

[1] Conflict of interests:

No.