Dementia as a risk factor for aspiration in patients with COVID‐19

• Published in: Geriatrics & Gerontology International Vol. 21; no. 8; pp. 757 - 758
• Main Authors: Yoshikawa, Hiroki, Komiya, Kosaku, Hamanaka, Ryosuke, Hiramatsu, Kazufumi, Kadota, Jun‐ichi
• Format: Journal Article Web Resource
• Language: English
• Published: Kyoto, Japan John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd 01.08.2021; John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Dementia; Letter to the Editor; Letters to the Editor: Comments
• ISSN: 1444-1586; 1447-0594
• DOI: 10.1111/ggi.14217

RSST is a screening test in which the patient is asked to swallow saliva as many times as possible for 30 s, and deglutition is counted through palpation of the larynx.5 For this patient, the RSST revealed a depressed swallowing function (2 swallows/30 s) 10 days after the onset of the disease (day 10); the patient's score increased to 3 swallows/30 s on day 15, after his body temperature had returned to normal on day 13. See PDF.] Not only SARS-CoV-2 infection but also most other infectious diseases can decrease the level of consciousness and possibly cause a deterioration in the swallowing function.6 Especially among patients having risk factors for aspiration, such as dementia or a history of brainstem infarction, potential swallowing dysfunction might become clinically evident following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Prognostic implications of aspiration pneumonia in patients with community acquired pneumonia: a systematic review with meta-analysis.