Archives

Clinical Complexities of Tracheostomy Care (Part 1 )

January 17, 2022 by Megan Berg.
Patients with tracheostomies are discharging into the community with increased frequency, challenging medical/rehab staff to provide highly skilled care for a fragile population. This course is designed to create a knowledge base for providers working with clients with tracheostomies and will provide a detailed review of decisions around initial placement of a trach, basics of […]
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Alternative Nutrition and Hydration: Evidence and Ethical Considerations

January 17, 2022 by Megan Berg.
We will review the evidence base of alternative nutrition and hydration for patients who have survived a stroke or brain injury, live with a neuro-degenerative disease, are in a persistent vegetative state, and/or have dysphagia, advanced dementia, advanced cancer or organ failure, and/or head and neck cancer. Relevant case studies from the Center for Practical […]
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How Can Speech-Language Pathologists Think About Sensation During Swallowing Evaluation and Intervention (2021)

January 14, 2022 by Megan Berg.
In graduate school, dysphagia is taught to include the four stages of swallowing: preparatory, oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal. The oral preparatory stage begins when the food or liquids are placed in front of us. The anticipatory stage of swallowing is an additional consideration because it includes the person’s environmental factors necessary for the eating process. […]
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Recommendations of Nasogastric Tube Removal in Acute Stroke Patients Based on Videofluoroscopic Swallow Study (2017)

January 14, 2022 by Megan Berg.
Dysphagia occurs in about 27% to 67% of patients after an acute stroke. Evaluation and treatment of dysphagia are important to prevent aspiration pneumonia and malnutrition, which reduce the person’s quality of life. Those patients with aspiration are seven times more likely to develop aspiration pneumonia than those without aspiration. It is common for NGT […]
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Decreased Swallowing Function in the Sarcopenic Elderly without Clinical Dysphagia: A Cross-Sectional Study (2020)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
As the body ages, the skeletal muscle system decreases with strength and functionality, called sarcopenia. Sarcopenia is currently determined by low muscle mass and strength, assessed with handgrip strength and gait speed. Some studies have shown sarcopenia may also affect swallowing strength, causing swallowing safety concerns. The swallowing function receives continuous and coordination feedback from […]
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Swallowing Function After Severe COVID-19: Early Videofluoroscopic Findings (2021)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
40% of patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) experience post-extubation dysphagia regardless of their diagnosis. For those patients who have severe COVID-19, their lungs are severely injured by ARDS. Speech-language pathologists need to evaluate these patients with COVID-19 within the intensive care unit specifically because they have high risks for dysphagia. Before this study, […]
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Respiratory Muscle Training in Stroke Patients with Respiratory Muscle Weakness, Dysphagia, and Dysarthria – A Prospective Randomized Trial (2020)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
After a stroke, people frequently have difficulties with swallowing, respiratory muscle weakness, impaired voluntary cough, decreased peak expiratory flow, reduced fitness abilities, and dysarthria. Inspiratory muscle training (MIT) is known to improve inspiratory muscle strength and endurance within eight weeks to achieve >90% expected maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP) for people with chronic stroke. Expiratory muscle […]
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Speech-Language Pathology Guidance for Tracheostomy During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An International Multidisciplinary Perspective (2020)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
Patients with tracheostomy increase the exposure risks for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and other frontline healthcare providers because of the direct contact with the mucosal surface, secretions, and aerosols. The reflexes of sneezing and coughing should be assumed grossly intact for awake patients, which increases the frequency of aerosolization during procedures. Many hospital procedures can cause […]
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Evaluation of Swallowing Function on Healthy Adults While Using High-Flow Nasal Cannula (2019)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
High-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) is a common method of treatment for individuals with compromised respiratory systems. HFNC benefits are well documented within the literature. Some of these benefits include reducing ventilation dead space within the lungs, reducing nasopharyngeal resistance, providing continuous positive airway pressure, and promoting the movement of secretions with inhalation of humidification. There […]
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Timing of Dysphagia Screening in Alzheimer’s Dementia (2020)

January 13, 2022 by Megan Berg.
Dysphagia is expected in the late and end stages of AD, but it can also happen in the disease’s early stage. During this early stage, the oropharyngeal dysphagia may be subtle and go unnoticed by patients and caregivers. Patients should be screened throughout the AD levels because aspiration, dysphagia, sarcopenia, and polypharmacy can happen during […]
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