Parkinson’s Disease and Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)

Dysphagia can be defined as an impairment in swallowing (oral phase, pharyngeal phase

and/or esophageal phase).

Research has indicated that most people with Parkinson’s disease will eventually
experience some degree of difficulty with swallowing. Some symptoms to watch for
include:

1. Weight loss
2. Giving up certain foods because it takes too long or is too tiring to eat.
3. Coughing, throat clearing or wet vocal quality after eating or drinking
4. “Pocketing” of food between the gums/teeth, lips or cheeks.
5. Increase of drooling or dribbling during eating.
6. Changes in sensations of food or pills sticking in your throat.
7. Pneumonia (especially if recurrent as this sometimes can be caused by aspiration,
or food/drink entering your airway)

If you notice changes to your swallowing, talk to your physician or neurologist. Your
physician can refer you to a Speech-Language Pathologist for evaluation and treatment of
dysphagia. A modified barium swallow study (MBSS) can also be ordered to further
assess the swallow function with x-ray and this can help determine the best plan of care
for you. Even if no difficulties are found on the MBSS, it can be helpful to have a
baseline for later comparison of your swallowing. A speech language pathologist can
help by providing exercises for chewing, swallowing and protection of your airway,
training strategies or postures that were found helpful to you on your modified barium
swallow study or modifying your diet if necessary.

“Aspiration precautions” are some general precautions we can all follow to increased
safety with eating and drinking:

-Eat slowly
-Small bites/sips
-Sit upright with eating and drinking