The termdysphagiarefers to difficulty swallowing. It can manifest as challenges in chewing, handling specific textures of solids and liquids, coughing while drinking liquids such as water or during meals. This symptom is prevalent in people with Lewy body dementia (LBD) and can lead to serious complications such as aspiration pneumonia.
In this webinar, Dr. Darla Freeman, speech language pathologist, will describe the common changes to swallowing in LBD, and provide strategies for managing and coping with these challenges to improve safety and quality of life.
By the end of this webinar, you will be able to:
- Describe the common changes to swallowing experienced with LBD.
- Summarize the treatments commonly used to treat and manage dysphagia in LBD.
- Identify coping strategies that can be utilized to improve safety with swallowing.
About Dr. Darla Freeman
Darla Freeman is a speech-language pathologist who’s been treating voice and swallowing disorders for over 25 years. She earned her doctorate degree from Northwestern University with a research focus on factors influencing successful behavior changes in adult intervention. She is a scope specialist offering state-of-the art voice and swallowing evaluations and evidence-based treatment in Tampa, Florida. Dr. Freeman joined the Parkinson Foundation’s Team Training faculty in 2016 and has educated patients, caregivers, and professionals through online and in person presentations. Dr. Freeman was invited to speak at the WPC in Kyoto, Japan and Barcelona, Spain on topics focusing on communication and swallowing disorders related to Parkinson’s and atypical Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Freeman currently practices at the University of South Florida Voice Center and Florida ENT and Allergy Voice and Swallowing Center.
For questions or more information, please contact Rose Heithoff, Education Coordinator, at [email protected].
