The Dysphagia Research Society Accelerating a Priority Research Agenda

The DRS was established 25 years ago with the intention of bringing together a variety of disciplines involved with research into mechanisms, diagnosis, and management of swallowing disorders (dysphagia). With a rapidly growing membership and committee structure within the DRS, as well as in other similar societies throughout the world pursuing the same agenda (i.e. sharing research findings and putting it into practice), the global importance of this type of interdisciplinary development of research has become increasingly apparent. The DRS has reached out to other dysphagia societies across the globe, including the Japanese society, European society, and Latin American society. Research is now crossing the globe as well as crossing the age span from pediatrics to geriatrics. Interest in swallowing and swallowing disorders is reaching an all-time high. With this much attention and diversity, variability in the quality and direction of research can occur. Therefore, it is increasingly important to develop an all-inclusive research agenda for the DRS to serve as a guide for developing further work in this field that is well designed, functional, and impactful.