Speech and language therapists play an important role in supporting adults who have eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties (dysphagia) to eat and drink safely. They do this by working directly with individuals or indirectly by training others, including families and the wider health and care workforce, to identify and manage problems.
Dysphagia A Serious Issue
Eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties have potentially life-threatening consequences. They can result in choking, pneumonia, chest infections, dehydration, malnutrition and weight loss. They can also make taking medication more difficult. They can also lead to a poorer quality of life for the individual and their family. This may be due to embarrassment and lack of enjoyment of food, which can have profound social consequences.
Swallowing Difficulties In Adults
Dysphagia in adults is associated with a number of different conditions, including:
• Stroke
• Progressive neurological disorders, including dementia, Parkinson’s disease, motor neuron disease, multiple sclerosis,
and muscular dystrophy
• Cancer, including head and neck, lung, and esophageal
• Respiratory conditions, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, and asthma
• Learning disability, developmental and acquired disorders
• Disorders of the immune system
• Traumatic brain injury
Acutely ill patients in critical care beds, including those with cervical spinal injuries and those with community acquired
pneumonia, Guillain-Barré and influenza can also have dysphagia. Acid reflux can also result in swallowing difficulties.
How Speech And Language Therapy Can Help
Speech and language therapists have a unique role in the assessment, diagnosis and management of swallowing
difficulties. They:
• Play a key role in the diagnosis of dysphagia
• Help people regain their swallowing through exercises, techniques and positioning
• Promote patient safety through modifying the texture of food and fluids, reducing the risk of malnutrition, dehydration
and choking
• Promote quality of life, taking into account an individual’s and their families’ preferences and beliefs, and helping them
adjust to living with swallowing difficulties
• Work with other healthcare staff, particularly dietitians, to optimize nutrition and hydration
• Educate and train others in identifying, assessing and managing dysphagia, including families and the wider health
and care workforce