In a swallowing diagram of oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal structures, which description best fits the bolus transit at the moment depicted?

• A. The bolus is being propelled from the oral cavity by the tongue and has entered the pharynx.
• B. The bolus is traveling through the esophagus.
• C. The bolus has passively exited the oral cavity without propulsion by the tongue.
• D. Laryngeal penetration of some of the bolus is evident.

Answer: (B)

Recognize the swallowing stages by where the bolus is located. If the bolus is seen traveling through the esophagus, that places it in the esophageal stage, after it has already moved through the mouth and pharynx into the upper esophageal sphincter, and it’s being carried downward by esophageal peristalsis toward the stomach.

Propulsion by the tongue happens during the oral stage, so moving from the mouth into the pharynx isn’t the moment described. Laryngeal penetration involves the bolus entering the laryngeal inlet during the pharyngeal stage, not during transit through the esophagus. So the description that fits the moment depicted is that the bolus is traveling through the esophagus.