Choking(3)

TK67

My 77 year old mother lives with me full time and has late state (I assume) dementia.  We are seeing her neurologist tomorrow and I want to go armed with information so I can help mom.

What have you experienced with your LO choking?  In the past 6 months she's had about 7 choking incidents where we have to give her the Heimlich maneuver or she can't clear her throat on her own.  She has a terrified look on her face and cries afterwards because it scares her.  Sometimes it is food that chokes her but lately it can be a drink of water or her own saliva.

RobOT

TK, this one is so hard.  Choking--inability to swallow properly--is often a phase in dementia, and there's a limited amount that can be done.  The neurologist will probably order a barium swallow test, where your mother will be in front of a fluoroscope while she swallows different textures of food.  The speech therapist will watch and tell you where in the progression of swallowing the problem is.  They may prescribe different textures of food that will be swallowed with better control, and advise against certain textures that aren't tolerated.  As bad as choking is aspiration--inhaling food into the lungs--that will cause pneumonia.  Your mother may need all liquids thickened, she may need her food cut very small, ground, or even blended like baby food.  I hope this information helps.  Another source would be to type "swallowing problems" into a search bar.  I recommend articles from the Mayo Clinic as they are short and non-technical, but cover the subject well.

M1

I think RobOT is right TK, it is likely a progression of the disease, but a swallowing study may help sort it out so that you know what textures of foods to offer. That's assuming she can cooperate with the study. Sorry you're having this trouble.