. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2021 Nov 1.

Published in final edited form as: Crit Care Med. 2020 Nov;48(11):1604–1611. doi: 10.1097/CCM.0000000000004554

Table 2:

Aspiration events by bolus type where N represents the number of patients who aspirated on each bolus consistency and % is in proportion to the entire sample (N=210).

Bolus Consistency	N(%) Patients who Aspirated	Silent Aspiration	Non-Silent Aspiration
Ice	N=17 (8%)	N=7	N=10
Puree	N=6 (3%)	N=4	N=2
Nectar	N=16 (8%)	N=6	N=10
Thin Liquid	N=53^* (25%)	N=19^*	N=37^*
Ice	N=3 (1%)	N=0	N=3

Since multiple boluses of a given consistency could have been given, a patient may have experienced both a silent and non-silent aspiration event on separate boluses. This phenomenon is thought to be due to the fact that dysphagic patients are more likely to sense larger boluses, which is the underlying rationale behind the water swallow screening exams.