Like most stroke victims, after the stroke Mum was left with difficulty swallowing. This difficulty swallowing is known medically as dysphagia: dys meaning bad or disordered, and the root phag- meaning “eat”. So literally “bad or disordered eating”.
Since dysphagia is so common after a stroke, it’s one of the first things a stroke patient is assessed for. Mum had her first speech therapist assessment for dysphagia in the emergency room and the results of that determined exactly how and in what form she could be fed. Stroke victims who eat or drink the wrong things with dysphagia are in danger of aspiration (inhaling food or drink), which can cause chest infections. Up to one third of stroke patients are estimated to develop dangerous chest infections following a stroke due to dysphagia.
This is why if you suspect somebody is having a stroke you should absolutely not, under any circumstances, let them eat or drink anything.
This information sheet from the Stroke Foundation has the most basic explanation of the problem.
A speech therapist may make a number of recommendations following an assessment of the degree of a stroke patient’s dysphagia. These can range anywhere from a feeding tube to having their food softened. Fluids might need to be administered intravenously or be thickened so they don’t go into the lungs.
When Mum first had her stroke she was put on thickened fluids and completely minced food. Medications had to be crushed and fed to her in yoghurt. She had to be on a drip for a few days to ensure hydration. Over the last six weeks, Mum had progressed from minced food with thickened fluids to minced with normal fluids, soft/minced (where the vegetables were chopped small and softened but the protein was minced), all soft and then a normal diet.
For a stroke patient, feeding themselves – even with only one hand and left-side neglect – is a part of their therapy. However, for a long time Mum needed active supervision while she was eating to make sure she followed “the rules” (impulse control is a common result of a right hemisphere stroke). Mum is now able to eat in the dining room with the other patients and needs little supervision
It’s so wonderful to see her eating a normal diet, completely independently.
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