Introduction:

Dysphagia refers to the alteration in the swallowing process; its treatment requires a multidisciplinary approach to ensure the safety and efficacy of feeding. The aim of this study was to describe the existence and characteristics of interdisciplinary teams in the treatment of oropharyngeal dysphagia (OPD) in adult and pediatric patients, and the use of typifications of oral diets adapted for this purpose, in health institutions with hospitalization in the Argentine Republic.

Methodology:

Exploratory study. Non-random sampling. A self-designed questionnaire aimed at Registered Dietitians was applied. Data was processed with VCCStat - Beta3.0®. Descriptive statistics were calculated with CI95%.

Results:

100 health institutions were sampled, from 22 districts. 38% (IC95%: 28.6-48.3) had interdisciplinary teams for the treatment of OPD, and only 12% were well formed and fully operational. 75.8% (IC95%: 63.0-85.4) reported that the greatest difficulty in forming an interdisciplinary team was the lack of professionals linked to OPD treatment. 40% (IC95%: 30.5-50.3) did not have standardized diets designed for this group of patients. Only 11% and 6% of institutions used IDDSI nomenclature to describe consistency of food and beverages.

Conclusions:

In most cases there were no interdisciplinary teams for treatment of patients with OPD, neither standardized diets nor consensus regarding the nomenclature used to describe textures and consistencies. Training and specialization of health professionals and the will of each institution to promote interdisciplinary teams to treat OPD are urgently needed.

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