Psychometric Characteristics of Non-instrumental Swallowing and Feeding Assessments in Pediatrics: A Systematic Review Using COSMIN

Abstract

As early diagnosis of swallowing and feeding difficulties in infants and children is of utmost importance, there is a need to evaluate the quality of the psychometric properties of pediatric assessments of swallowing and feeding. A systematic review was performed summarizing the psychometric properties of non-instrumental assessments for swallowing and feeding difficulties in pediatrics; no data were identified for the remaining twelve assessments. The COSMIN taxonomy and checklist were used to evaluate the methodological quality of 23 publications on psychometric properties. For each assessment, an overall quality score for each measurement property was determined. As psychometric data proved incomplete, conflicting or indeterminate for all assessments, only preliminary conclusions could be drawn; the most robust assessment based on current data is the dysphagia disorder survey (DDS). However, further research is needed to provide additional information on all psychometric properties for all assessments.