The Modified Barium Swallow Impairment Profile (MBSImP) is a standardized method for teaching, assessing, and reporting physiological swallowing impairments based on observations from the MBS study. It covers the assessment of 17 components of the adult swallowing mechanism and includes a scoring system to objectively profile these impairments. The MBSImP enables clinicians to communicate MBS study results in a consistent, specific, accurate, and evidence-based manner.

The Dynamic Imaging Grade of Swallowing Toxicity (DIGEST) is a validated system used to assess the severity of pharyngeal swallowing impairment due to cancer. This grading is based on the extent and patterns of penetration/aspiration and pharyngeal residue observed during a standardized radiographic modified barium swallow (MBS) study.

DIGEST-FEES is a reliable scale for assessing the severity of safety, efficiency, and overall pharyngeal stage swallowing impairment in people with head and neck cancer (HNC) using FEES. It aligns with the original DIGEST™ scale - demonstrating strong correlations with reference measures of swallowing function, in addition to other FEES assessments. Further, it has moderate correlations with other dysphagia measures, including patient-perceived quality of life, diet level, and secretion severity.

The Penetration–Aspiration Scale (PAS) is a widely used tool for identifying and rating the severity of penetration and aspiration events. It is a rank-ordered scale that classifies the depth of the penetrated or aspirated material and the patient’s response to the airway invasion.

Although frequently used for videofluoroscopy, the PAS further demonstrates excellent inter- and intrarater reliability in its use with FEES.

The New Zealand Secretion Scale (NZSS) is utilized to assess accumulated secretions during endoscopy. Secretions are rated under the categories of location, amount, and response. The NZSS is a reliable tool to assess secretion severity during endoscopy that can be used without training.

The Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS) developed by Crary et al. (2005) is an ordinal scale with seven tiers that assess the oral intake of food and liquids. It is a commonly used scale for the rating of the range of oral intake for individuals with dysphagia and is used in both clinical practice and research settings. The FOIS demonstrates adequate reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change in functional oral intake.

The Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10), developed by Belafsky et al. (2008) is a 10-item, self-administered, symptom-specific outcome instrument for dysphagia. It is used to identify individuals at a high risk of swallowing disorders. Each item corresponds to 5 levels of difficulty ranging from “no problem” to “serious problem,” with a total score of 0 to 40. The EAT-10 demonstrates correlation between scores and pharyngeal residue, penetration, and aspiration as identified by FEES and MBS.

The Reflux Finding Score is an 8-item severity rating scale assessed via endoscopy. This scale includes the most prevalent laryngeal changes secondary to laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR). Those that score higher than 7 have more than 95% likelihood of having LPR. The RFS demonstrates excellent inter- and intra-observer reproducibility.

The Reflux Symptom Index (RSI) is a validated self-administered nine-item outcomes instrument for laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR). It is an easily administered tool that demonstrates excellent construct and criterion-based validity. The RSI can be beneficial in the early diagnosis of LPR.

The Yale Pharyngeal Residue Severity Rating Scale is a standardized, validated, and reliable tool used to determine residue location and severity based on flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES). It is an anatomically defined, image-based assessment that utilizes a five-point ordinal rating scale based on residue location and amount.