Abstract Objectives Children with cerebral palsy (CP) at Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) IV–V commonly present with dysphagia that limits oral feeding and increases malnutrition risk. We evaluated whether adding transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation/neuromuscular electrical stimulation (TENS/EMS) to speech‐language therapy (SLT) improves orofacial function and acceptance of more advanced food textures. Methods Experimental study including 50 children aged 4–8 years with CP (GMFCS IV/V) and neurogenic dysphagia. Participants were allocated (concealed envelopes) to SLT alone (control) or SLT + TENS/EMS (experimental) in a random order. The intervention comprised three 5‐day treatment cycles spaced 2 months apart. Each 30‐min session included oral‐motor exercises and texture advancement per the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI). TENS (50–100 Hz) and EMS (20–50 Hz) were applied to the suprahyoid and infrahyoid muscles. The primary outcome was IDDSI texture acceptance assessed at baseline (I1), mid‐cycle (I2), and post‐cycle (I3) by blinded evaluators. Results The experimental group improved in mean IDDSI texture acceptance from 2.1 ± 0.8 (I1) to 4.0 ± 0.9 (I3), versus 2.0 ± 0.7 to 2.8 ± 0.8 in controls ( p < 0.01). Advancement by two IDDSI levels occurred in 72% (18/25) of the experimental group compared with 28% (7/25) of controls ( χ ² = 10.36, p < 0.01). Conclusions SLT augmented with TENS/EMS significantly enhances orofacial sensory‐motor performance and tolerance of more complex food textures in children with severe CP. TENS/EMS appears to be a promising adjunct in pediatric feeding therapy; longer‐term efficacy and nutritional outcomes warrant further study.
Kaczyńska et al. (2026) studied this question.