Longitudinal EAT-10 Score Pattern in Specific Biopsychosocial Factors in a Patient with Sporadic Neoplastic Mechanical Dysphagia of the Oesophagus: A Case Report.

INTRODUCTION: Mechanical dysphagia is due to oesophageal structural alteration and presents a major nutritional concern among neoplastic oesophageal patients. The biopsychosocial factors still do influence residual physiological swallowing mechanisms in the setting of oesophageal neoplasms. Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10) has traditionally been used cross-sectionally by clinicians to screen for dysphagic patients (EAT-10 ≥3) and identify aspiration at-risk dysphagic patients (EAT-10 ≥15). In this case report, EAT-10 has been longitudinally used as a patient-reported outcome of various biopsychosocial settings on a sporadically occurring dysphagia.

CASE PRESENTATION: This case report is on the patterns of longitudinally taken post-prandial EAT-10 score in a patient in his 70s presenting with sporadic neoplastic dysphagia of the oesophagus. The scores were taken after meals of the same amount and consistency, but in different settings, i.e., meals taken post-fasting, in isolation, at social gatherings, before and after the first as well as the last induction chemotherapy. The observations for each setting were taken serially for 20 days.

CONCLUSION: EAT-10 scores in social gathering, before initiation, and at the end of induction chemotherapy were high while meals served in isolation, post-fasting, and soon after initiation of induction chemotherapy had low EAT-10 scores, indicating the likelihood of biopsychosocial modulation on residual swallowing mechanisms. EAT-10 score influenced by modifiable biopsychosocial factors aided in delivering instructions tailored on how to improve oral food intake, body nutrition, and response to treatment.