Hi all I am currently helping my mum care for my dad. He is 86. He came out of hospital on Fri. He is on level 4 diet level 2 fluids. He has Alzheimers. He also had a mild stroke 4 weeks ago. He has had aspiration pneumonia and got a dvt in hospital because they had him in bed all the time. His swallowing has got worse. He's hardly eating or drinking since discharge. Very hard to get fluids down him. We are trying to prioritise Nutilis 3 fortified drink then ribena. Manages 3 teaspoons of yogurt with his medicine crushed in it. It's heartbreaking when he can't swallow. He holds it ij his mouth. Please advise if you have been on this position. My mum is so upset.Thankyou
Dad has swallowing problems
- Thread starter Jahan
- Start date
Welcome @Jahan
I`m. so sorry about your dad.
My father lost the ability to swallow. He also lost his speech and we were told it was the area of his brain that was damaged. He had hydrocephalus as the result of a head injury and this caused his dementia.
Although my father has been in this position, I cannot advise because it will probably be different to your dad`s condition, I just want to sympathise because I know how upsetting it is.
Have you had advice from a Speech and Language Therapist or Occupational Therapist? They are the ones who have the most knowledge about the mouth and throat and I would ask for a referral to them.
I`m. so sorry about your dad.
My father lost the ability to swallow. He also lost his speech and we were told it was the area of his brain that was damaged. He had hydrocephalus as the result of a head injury and this caused his dementia.
Although my father has been in this position, I cannot advise because it will probably be different to your dad`s condition, I just want to sympathise because I know how upsetting it is.
Have you had advice from a Speech and Language Therapist or Occupational Therapist? They are the ones who have the most knowledge about the mouth and throat and I would ask for a referral to them.
Hello @Jahan and welcome to posting on the forum. I'm sorry to hear about your dad, he has been through a lot and sounds very poorly. My mum had aspiration pneumonia and was assessed by the SALT team when in hospital. She was on level 2 fluids and a level 5 diet, so similar to your dad, but was in a nursing home so feeding/drinking was carefully monitored by the nurses. It must be much more difficult to try to manage this yourselves at home. It sounds like your dad may already have been assessed by the SALT team (in hospital?) but as he has got worse since discharge and he is now hardly eating or drinking I think it would be a good idea to speak to the GP to let them know. If necessary they will be able to make a referral back to the SALT team.
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