Dysphagia is difficulty moving food or liquid from the mouth to the stomach. It shows up, among other things, as choking, coughing while eating or a feeling of food sticking in the throat. Left untreated, it can lead to aspiration pneumonia, dehydration and malnutrition.
Swallowing disorders (dysphagia) — speech therapy assessment and rehabilitation
Dysphagia is difficulty moving food or liquid from the mouth to the stomach. It shows up, among other things, as choking, coughing while eating or a feeling of food sticking in the throat. Left untreated, it can lead to aspiration pneumonia, dehydration and malnutrition.
About the problem
Swallowing disorders often appear after a stroke, in neurological diseases (e.g. Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), after surgery and radiotherapy in the head and neck area, and in older people.
A swallowing assessment includes functional diagnostics and food trials. It makes it possible to identify the type of dysphagia, choose a safe consistency of food and liquids, and plan rehabilitation.
Swallowing rehabilitation includes strengthening exercises, techniques and positions that make swallowing safer, and diet modification. The speech therapist sets the plan based on the assessment results.
Most common symptoms
- choking or coughing while eating or drinking
- a feeling of food sticking in the throat
- a change in the voice (a “wet” or hoarse voice) after a meal
- longer mealtimes and avoiding certain foods
- recurrent pneumonia or unintended weight loss
When to see a doctor
- when choking at mealtimes keeps happening
- after a stroke or in the course of a neurological disease, when eating becomes difficult
- after treatment for head and neck cancer
- urgently — when food is stuck and cannot be swallowed or coughed up, or you become short of breath