Innovations in Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Speech Pathologists and Engineers in Dysphagia Research
Innovations in Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Speech Pathologists and Engineers in Dysphagia Research will highlight groundbreaking partnerships between clinicians and engineers advancing the field of dysphagia assessment and treatment. This session will showcase innovative approaches including multimodal imaging, non-invasive diagnostic tools, and wearable sensor technologies, aimed at improving our understanding, diagnosis, and management of swallowing disorders across diverse patient populations.
Agenda
Opening and Introduction of Speakers
Emily K. Plowman, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
SimulScan: Multi-modal MRI Revolutionizing Our Understanding of Central and Peripheral Swallowing Control
Georgia A. Malandraki, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, BCS-S, F-ASHA & Bradley P. Sutton, Ph.D.
The SMART Bottle: Path Towards Non-Invasive Infant Dysphagia Diagnostics
Katlyn Elizabeth McGrattan, Ph.D. & Kyle Dahlstrom, PMP MS
From Signal to Solution: Harnessing Big Data and Bioengineering to Reimagine Dysphagia Treatment
Bonnie Martin-Harris, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, BCS-S & Jacob Trueb
Panel Discussion – Question & Answer
All Faculty
Explain the benefits of interdisciplinary collaboration in advancing dysphagia research and clinical care.
Identify emerging technologies, including multimodal imaging, wearable sensors, and noninvasive diagnostic tools, that enhance dysphagia assessment and treatment.
Describe how engineering and clinical partnerships contribute to the development and commercialization of innovative diagnostic and
therapeutic solutions.Discuss the clinical applications and potential impact of these innovations on improving outcomes
for patients with swallowing disorders.
Our Speakers
Emily Plowman, PhD, CCC-SLP, F-ASHA
Dr. Emily Plowman is a Professor in department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at the Ohio State University where she serves as the Director of the OSU Wexner Medical Center Dysphagia and director of the Aerodigestive Research Core (ARC) research laboratory. She is an internationally recognized expert in the field of dysphagia who has held uninterrupted funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since commencing her academic career in 2009. Dr. Plowman was inducted as a Fellow into the American Speech and Hearing Association in 2022 and she was elected as the incoming President of the Dysphagia Research Society.
Financial Disclosures:
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- President on Executive Committee and Board of Directors, Dysphagia Research Society.
Bonnie Martin-Harris, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, ASHA Honors
Dr. Martin-Harris is the Alice Gabrielle Twight Professor in the Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery and Radiation Oncology, Director of the Swallowing Cross System Collaborative Laboratory, and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs in the School of Communication at Northwestern University. Her clinical and research interests include respiratory-swallowing interactions, and swallowing assessment and treatment approaches for dysphagic patients related to head and neck cancer, neurologic and pulmonary diseases.
Financial Disclosures:
- Employed by Northwestern University (salary).
- Receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bracco Diagnostics, Michael J. Fox Foundation, the Veteran’s Administration (VA RR&D), and the Mark and Evelyn Trammell Trust.
- Receives royalties for teaching and educational content through Northern Speech Services and the MUSC Zucker Institute.
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- No additional relevant disclosures.
Brad Sutton, PhD
Brad Sutton, PhD, is a Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and Technical Director of the Biomedical Imaging Center at Beckman Institute. He has over 20 years experience as a magnetic resonance imaging physicist, designing acquisition and image reconstruction techniques for functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging. His research is focused on designing novel MRI methods to see physiological changes in brain structure and function with age and interventions, along with dynamic imaging to visualize high-speed processes in speech and swallowing.
Financial Disclosures:
- Employed by the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (salary).
- Receives research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- No relevant disclosures exist.
Georgia A. Malandraki, PhD, CCC-SLP
Georgia A. Malandraki, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, ASHA Fellow is a Professor of Speech, Language, & Hearing Sciences and Biomedical Engineering (Courtesy) at Purdue University and a Board-Certified Specialist in Swallowing Disorders. At Purdue she directs the I-EaT Swallowing Research Lab and Clinic. Her research program aims to improve understanding of the neural control of swallowing using advanced imaging and electrophysiology methods, develop neurophysiology-based treatments for dysphagia, and enhance treatment access via wearable and telehealth technologies.
Financial Disclosures:
- Employed by Purdue University (salary).
- Receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and research support from David and Deanna Greulich.
- Receives research-related support from GnosisPowerED, LLC.
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- Past President and active member of the Dysphagia Research Society.
- Member and RSAC Committee Member, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA).
Kyle Dahlstrom, PhD
Kyle Dahlstrom is the Director of Product Development at Medtronic, leading innovation in Spinal Cord Stimulation and Targeted Drug Delivery portfolios. He is also the co-founder of nuBorn Medical, where he is driving the development of a smart bottle to assess pediatric dysphagia. With over 13 years of experience in the medical device industry, Kyle has led products through all phases of the development lifecycle—from early concept to commercial launch—for both Class II and Class III devices.
Financial Disclosures:
- Employed by Medtronic (salary).
- Receives financial relationships as a consultant and investigator with the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
- Co-founder and board member of nuBorn Medical Inc with ownership interest and salary.
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- No relevant disclosures exist.
Katlyn McGrattan, PhD, CCC-SLP
Katelyn McGrattan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Science at the University of Minnesota, and a clinician at Masonic Children’s Hospital. Her research focuses on the refinement of pediatric dysphagia assessment to enable the provision of targeted interventions that maximize therapeutic effects. She has research lines elucidating normal infant feeding characteristics to allow greater precision in impairment cut-points, development of non-invasive instrumentation to facilitate greater accuracy in the clinical feeding assessment, and carry-over of these methods to high-risk dysphagia populations such as infants with Spinal Muscular Atrophy.
Financial Disclosures:
- Employed by the University of Minnesota (salary).
- Serves as Principal Investigator on grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
- Intellectual property rights and ownership interest with nuBorn Medical.
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- No relevant disclosures exist.
Jacob Trueb, PhD
Jacob Trueb is the Lead Software Engineer at the Querrey Simpson Institute for Bioelectronics (QSIB) at Northwestern University. He focuses on correct, efficient computing in bioelectronic systems and real-time biosignal analysis. As an individual contributor, Jacob works across digital signal processing, machine learning, embedded systems, iOS and full-stack development, and circuit design. He brings over five years of experience with Rust, applied across QSIB’s stack—from embedded devices to large-scale data analysis.
Financial Disclosures:
- Receiving a speaking fee from NWIF, Inc. for this educational symposium.
Non-Financial Disclosures:
- No relevant disclosures exist.
