Speech Therapy
765-655-2639
Speech Therapy is available through Putnam County Hospital Rehabilitation Services. By virtue of its name, most people assume that Speech Therapy has something to do with being able to speak. That assumption is true: speech therapy does address problems with word finding or anomia, articulation skills, patterns of expression, and expressing/sequencing thought processes. However, a very significant aspect speech therapy is treating dysphagia.
Dysphagia is difficulty in chewing and swallowing that can occur with the natural aging process or because of disease or damage to the nerves and muscles involved in the swallowing process. The following list of signs and symptoms are commonly associated with dysphagia:
- Coughing/choking when eating or drinking
- Coughing on thin liquids, especially water
- Wet gurgly vocal qualities after eating or drinking
- Food left in the moth after swallowing or after meals
- Frequent clearing of the throat
- Drooling
- Refusal or inability to eat or chew
- Consistent or significant weight loss
- Right lower lobe congestion
- Spiked temperature of unknown origin
- Unexplained tachycardia
- Dyspnea, tachypnea
- Increased sputum
- Arterial blood gases revealing hypoxia
- Conditions or disease processes that frequently lead to dysphagia include:
- CVA
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Cerebral Palsy
- Dementia
- Laryngectomy
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Tracheostomy
- Pneumonia, aspiration related
- A.L.S.
- Huntington’s Disease/Chorea
- Head/Neck Cancer
- Extreme Debilitation
To determine the extent of dysphagia, the speech therapist in conjunction with a radiologist will often perform a modified barium swallow or videoflouroscopic study of the swallowing mechanism. The results of this study will help guide the physician and speech therapist in evaluating and managing dysphagia. To treat dysphagia, the speech therapist can prescribe specific muscle strengthening through exercise and/or electrical stimulation, explore compensatory strategies, and make diet recommendations.
For more information on speech therapy services, please contact Rehabilitation Services, (765) 655-2639 at your Putnam County Hospital.