Friday, March 11, 2016

Why Elder Patients Need Oral Care And Aspiration Pneumonia To Prevent Diseases

By Helen Hayes


The lack of oxygen is the number one reason why many elderly patients suffer from choking. Choking happen when there is a solid material forming around the esophageal area. Or when food is not properly chewed and broken down which becomes an obstruction around the throat area.

However it does not have to be a large object for choking to happen. Because even a tiny piece of rice could cause serious damage to patients undergoing throat surgery or older patients. Hence it is important for health carers to practice oral care and aspiration pneumonia to prevent this from happening.

Elderly subjects have it hard due to their age and medical condition. That is why many often develop systemic diseases which lead to serious complications in their bodies. And these elderly subjects develop more serious health issues that often leads to death.

A low and weak immune system is often one reason why systemic diseases like osteoporosis, complications with diabetes, low or high birth weight, bacterial pneumonia, and cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and heart attack. Furthermore subjects who have serious drinking problems, aging adults, trouble with swallowing and chewing, comatose, alertness is low, and those who are under sedatives are prone to aspiration. Aside these older individuals with a past medical conditions are also prone to infection.

There are nine known causes of anaerobic pneumonia such as esophageal disorders, binge drinking of alcohol, comatose, low alertness, problems with swallowing, anesthesia, aging, problems around the dentures, and sedatives. However in other patients with brain injury there are problems with chewing and swallowing. And imperative that health care workers review patients chart carefully.

Anaerobic or aspiration pneumonia is caused by an inflammation near the tubes of bronchial area and lungs. Inflammation and infection occur when a patient has previously inhaled a foreign material such as liquid, vomitus, and food. But a patient who have a weakened immune system have difficulty in removing bacteria from the body.

Signs such as angina pectoris, dyspnea, wheezing, fatigue, discoloration of the skin color blue, cough with blood or foul odor, harder to swallow, stinky breath, and excessive sweating. Often times a doctor might add these symptoms while a physical examination is conducted like decreased platelet red blood cell count, heart rate increased, and crackling noises from the lungs. Hence if patients suspect they have a more serious problem underlying their current condition then visiting their general practitioner should be done.

Diagnosing this condition is done through several tests which include complete blood count, sputum culture, arterial blood gas, bronchoscopy, ct scan around chest area, swallow test, chest x ray, and blood culture. However the doctor might adds in the barium swallow test. So that they are able to get a clearer picture of your problems in regard to swallowing.

At the doctors office tests are performed along side a physical examination that assesses your health state. Tests such as x ray, abg, cbc, culture test, ct scan, barium test, and bronchoscopy are often done to assess the kind of infection has occurred. More over doctors prioritize the barium test which helps them understand the problems surrounding the chest area and swallowing problems. Thus subjects that go through serious lung infection should consult their doctors immediately to get the proper treatment and care.




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