Medical-AI trial: an AI app to make eating safer for older adults with swallowing difficulty (dysphagia) — sticking to the prescribed texture (RCT) (NCT07654088)

1Age-related swallowing difficulty and home practice

With age, swallowing can weaken, making dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) more likely. When swallowing goes wrong, food or liquid can enter the airway (aspiration), leading to choking, aspiration pneumonia, poor nutrition, and reduced quality of life. A mainstay response is texture modification, softening foods or thickening liquids.

But preparing the prescribed consistency day after day, especially at home, is hard, and that is where the approach tends to break down.

2An app that supports doing it at home

This study tests an AI smartphone app that supports that at-home execution, as a randomized controlled trial. Per the registry summary, against the risks of dysphagia (choking, aspiration pneumonia, poor nutrition) and the difficulty of texture modification, it examines whether an AI app can help community-dwelling older adults eat more safely.

The primary outcome is the proportion of meals adhering to the prescribed texture level (adherence). The size is 332, at the not-yet-recruiting stage.

3Where it breaks down

A dietary regimen does not work if what is correctly prescribed is not kept at home. What this study addresses is where it breaks.

1. 1A specialist prescribesThe correct level of texture and thickness is settled
2. 2It goes homeDaily preparation falls to the person or the family
3. 3Keeping it consistent is hardThis is where the measure weakens
4. 4An app supports itThe primary endpoint is the share of meals meeting the prescribed level

Failure to swallow properly sends food or fluid into the airway, leading to choking, aspiration pneumonia, malnutrition and loss of quality of life. Texture modification is the mainstay of prevention, and preparing the prescribed consistency day after day at home has been its weak point. The study covers 332 participants and is not yet recruiting.