Acceptance of different types of thickeners, with and without flavoring, in hospitalized patients with dysphagia - A pilot study.

INTRODUCTION the goal of this work was to evaluate the acceptance of various types of thickeners, specifically modified starch thickener and gum thickener, both with and without flavoring. PATIENTS AND METHODS a randomized sample of 40 hospitalized patients with oropharyngeal dysphagia was recruited. The taste, smell, and appearance of each type of thickener were evaluated, as well as the volume of liquid ingested by the patients taking each type of thickener (modified starch thickener vs. gum thickener, both with and without flavoring). RESULTS the overall acceptance of gum thickener was significantly higher than that of modified starch thickener (7.45 (1.57) vs. 5.10 (2.43), respectively; p = 0.001). When a food flavor was added to the thickened water, the overall rating of the product was higher than when no flavor was added (7.70 (1.53) vs. 4.85 (2.16); p < 0.001). The difference between the daily volume of water consumed by the patients who received gum thickeners (928.33 (331.27) mL) and those who received starch thickeners (670.00 (288.35) mL) was statistically significant (p = 0.012). Patient consumption was also higher when flavoring was added as compared to when it was not (943.33 (302.45) mL) vs. (655.00 (304.60) mL; p = 0.005). CONCLUSION the acceptances of the thickener and of water intake by patients with dysphagia were both significantly higher when using gum thickeners compared to starch thickeners, and when adding flavoring.