Swallowing and Feeding Difficulty

Swallowing difficulty (dysphagia), is any problem with; sucking, drinking, eating, controlling saliva, or inability to protect the lungs from food and drink (choking/ going down the wrong way).

Feeding

Feeding difficulties involve difficulty with oral intake and can be associated with medical, nutritional, feeding skill, and/or psychosocial dysfunction. These challenges with eating and drinking may be due to sensory difficulties, anatomical differences, oral motor difficulties, environmental impacts and/or swallowing difficulties.

Swallowing

Swallowing difficulties are often called 'dysphagia'. This can happen to a child from birth and can persist into their teenage and/or adult years. An adult can develop swallowing problems as a result of damage, degeneration or injury to the brain or structure of the head and neck.

Common conditions that result in dysphagia may include:

• Cancer

• Cleft palate

• Dementia

• GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease)

• Developmental disabilities

• Genetic conditions e.g., Down Syndrome, Pierre Robin syndrome

• MND (Motor neuron disease) e.g., ALS

• Parkinson’s disease

• Stroke

• Trauma or surgery to head and neck

• Myasthenia gravis

• Side effects of some medications

Secondary complications

Individuals who have trouble swallowing are at risk of secondary complications such as;

• Poor nutrition – (can impact growth and brain development in infants and children)

• Dehydration

• Pneumonia

How can we help?

Feeding

Treatment for feeding difficulties in children may be managed through exposure therapy/desensitisation to different textures and as well as improving muscular function to manage a variety of food textures e.g., hard crunchy foods.

Dysphagia

A speech pathologist will diagnose and treat dysphagia. Speech Pathologists within a multidisciplinary team (MDT) help with food modification, advice for intake of medication (based on the patient’s swallowing difficulty) and exercises. Rehabilitation of the swallow function may include exercises and/or compensatory strategies to ensure safe swallowing habits.