[Dysphagia] Xerostomia

[speechhuffman at nc.rr.com (Speech Julie)]

Here's a few more suggestions for symptomatic management if that's all he is 
able to do-
- humidifier in room at night
- I have had people like a personal steamer (like I would use for voice 
patients)
- sucking on sugarfree hard candy, non-mint (sugarfree because of the 
increased risk of cavities with xerostomia, non-mint not to irritate or 
exaccerbate reflux)
- spray water bottle with 2 tsp glycerin (has to be compounded and meant for 
oral consumption since there has been problems with general glycerin)
- avoiding products with sodium lauryl sulfate (the foaming agent in 
toothpastes, mouth rinses) that can be irriatating (change to Biotene 
products)
- moist food preparation, alternating with liquids
- gum chewing (if he has some saliva-otherwise it just falls apart)

If he may still have ability to produce saliva (not completely gone from 
XRT) he may benefit from prescription meds such as saligen or evoxac.

Hope that helps!  Julie

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Langdon, Claire" <Claire.Langdon at health.wa.gov.au>
To: "Irene Campbell-Taylor" <eripley at yahoo.com>; <dysphagia at b9.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2007 8:28 PM
Subject: Re: [Dysphagia] Xerostomia


> There are  studies that show a benefit for some head and neck cancer 
> patients from acupuncture, though the jury is still out that it is 
> efficacious for everyone
>
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=11920486&ordinalpos=19&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
>
> cheers
>
> Claire Langdon
> Senior Speech Pathologist
> Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital
> Hospital Avenue Nedlands
> West Australia
>
> Phone: 61-8-9346-2044
> email: Claire.Langdon at health.wa.gov.au
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: dysphagia-bounces at dysphagia.com
> [mailto:dysphagia-bounces at dysphagia.com]On Behalf Of Irene
> Campbell-Taylor
> Sent: Sunday, 2 September 2007 21:35
> To: dysphagia at b9.com
> Subject: [Dysphagia] Xerostomia
>
>
> It depends on the reason for the xerostomia. The most common is medication 
> side effect. In that case, unless the meds can be changed, d/c or reduced 
> in dosage, very little, if anything can be done. The second is 
> dehydration. Even though he drinks water throughout the day, he may still 
> not be getting enough. This is particularly likely if he has thick, ropy 
> saliva, a sure signs of dehydration. The major risk associated is 
> increased GER with increased risk of aspiration pneumonitis. A dry mouth 
> also breeds bacteria, fungi, dental caries and other undesirables. Some 
> diseases also cause xerostomia. In my experience, once the above have all 
> been examined and eliminated, the only relief comes from constantly 
> sucking crushed ice or something similar. People with Sjogren's still have 
> found no relief from the dry mouth and dry eyes associated with the 
> disease and report that having something wet in the mouth is the only 
> relief. There is an excellent article for dentists at:
> http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/dental/xerostomia.htm
>  In spite of the title, it's not only for cancer patients.
>
>
> Dr I Campbell-Taylor
> Clinical Neuroscientist
> Exclusive Distributor:
> www.interactivetherapy.com
> _______________________________________________
> Dysphagia mail list: Normal and disordered swallowing information
> Dysphagia at dysphagia.com
> Manage subscription: http://lists.b9.com/mailman/listinfo/dysphagia
> Visit the new Dysphagia Web Forum: http://dysphagia.com/forum
>
> _______________________________________________
> Dysphagia mail list: Normal and disordered swallowing information
> Dysphagia at dysphagia.com
> Manage subscription: http://lists.b9.com/mailman/listinfo/dysphagia
> Visit the new Dysphagia Web Forum: http://dysphagia.com/forum