Exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction - EILO is a term that describes a transient and reversible condition in which the larynx partially or completely closes during exercise, causing breathing problems that are greater than the expected shortness of breath at a given effort. The problems are resolved within a few minutes when the exercise is stopped, and are not present during rest. In the last few decades, several methods of treatment and assistance have been developed, among which speech therapy is the most often mentioned. Experience from abroad shows that laryngeal obstruction caused by exercise responds well to speech therapy focused on breathing techniques and control. In Slovenia, the majority of people with EILO are young people, active athletes. Therefore, a pediatrician most often comes into contact with them, refers the adolescent to a pulmonologist, who confirms the diagnosis of EILO, and then refers the patient to an otolaryngologist-phoniatrician, who evaluates the possible causes of EILO. In Slovenia, speech therapists are currently not involved in the diagnosis and treatment of EILO. People with EILO receive some guidance and advice to overcome their problems, but they are not systematically guided and receive follow-up or therapy.
With this research, we wanted to examine which breathing techniques and information helped people with EILO to overcome problems and what were the effects of (not) using these techniques after a long period of time in different groups of patients. We wanted to get an insight into the current situation and the need to include a speech therapist in the professional team for people with EILO.
In the research we included 49 people with confirmed diagnosis of EILO, who were less than 25 years old at the time of the diagnosis and who received the diagnosis between May 2013 and January 2023. They participated by filling in a purpose-built questionnaire about their sports activities, their problems, changes in the problems in the time since they have appeared, coping with them, satisfaction with the help and information received, and the need for speech therapy.
The results showed that the severity of the problems of our participants decreased in the time since receiving the diagnosis. Most of the participants reduced their weekly sports activity (according to them, the reasons for this are not problems due to EILO) except those whose problems had completely stopped. Young people in Slovenia usually stop during exercise to overcome problems. For the most part, they have not developed a strategy that can be used regularly and effectively to overcome difficulties during exercise without interruption. Among the breathing techniques to overcome problems, breathing through the nose is the most often mentioned. They received the information to the greatest extent from the medical staff and expressed relative satisfaction with it, however, the vast majority would like the support of a speech therapist. Comparison of the course of the disease between the different groups did not show statistically significant differences. A more favorable course of the disease was shown only in the group of those who were satisfied with the information received from the medical staff.
Through the research, we gained insight into the course of the disease over a longer period of time and how people with EILO cope with their problems. The obtained results are a good starting point for further research and will help to better identify the needs of people with EILO, among which the need for help from a speech therapist is evident.
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