Every December 12th the World Day of the Dysphagia with the purpose of raising awareness of a condition that can affect different people in the elderly.
The dysphagia It is defined as a symptom that shows problems in the swallowingthat is, difficulty for swallow. Although it is not a diseasepeople who suffer from it may present difficulties such as inability to ingest food or liquids, as well as the risk of aspiration.
This condition affects approximately 8% of the world populationalthough the percentage could increase between older adults or patients such as diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s or stroke.
Multiple health professionals They urge the population that presents this symptom to attend their medical evaluations with specialists in speech therapy or therapy swallowing. The early detection and appropriate treatment considerably improve the quality of life of patients with this condition.
Symptoms
Some symptoms are: annoyance or pain when eating food, feeling that the food does not go down into the area of the esophagus, presence of a hoarse voice, heartburn, sudden weight loss, among others.
History
The first reports of the dysphagia They go back to the medical texts of the Ancient Greece. Hippocratesconsidered the father of medicine, cited the symptom of difficulty swallow as a problem associated with neurological diseases.
