152 CHAPTER 7 one up to three years (medium-term) and follow-up after three years (long-term). Data until 32 weeks postintervention were prospectively obtained. The long-term effectiveness was evaluated by means of a survey consisting of 22 questions, either filled out by patients and/or their caretakers or by the investigators while administering the same survey via a telephone call. The medical record was used to gather additional information regarding patient characteristics, adverse events and subsequent (pharmacological or invasive) treatment for drooling after 2-DL. Setting The 2-DL interventions took place in [removed for blind peer review] between July 2006 and June 2018. The period of recruitment was from February 2019 to May 2019. Regular follow-up lasted until December 2018. Data collection took place from January 2019 until September 2019. Participants and study size Patients were eligible when they were diagnosed with a nonprogressive neurodevelopmental disorder and experienced anterior drooling, for which they underwent 2-DL between July 2006 and June 2018. The degree of drooling was indicated by the Drooling Severity score (none (1), mild (2), moderate (3), severe (4), profuse (5); DS) and the Drooling Frequency score (never (1), occasional (2), frequent (3), constant (4); DF)12. DS ≤ 2 and DF ≤ 1 indicates mild or absent drooling, which served as an exclusion criterium. Additional exclusion criteria were either simultaneous (< 6 months after 2-DL) glandular botulinum neurotoxin injection, or alternative treatment for drooling within 32 weeks post 2-DL. Patient demographics and characteristics are depicted in table 1. See figure 1 for the flow diagram of patient inclusion that led to our study group.
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