Swallow Study

James has his swallow study with the speech therapist at the hospital. He ate green beans and drank some formula laced with the dye while they took x-rays of his mouth and throat. The therapist never saw him aspirate anything (yay!), but at one point they got a picture of him coughing up a little bit from his airway. He spit up once during the study so they think the liquid in his airway was from that, but they weren't sure. Usually when they see fluid come out the windpipe, but not go in, it indicates a fistula (which we know he doesn't have from all his surgeries). The therapist suggested thickened liquids in a sippy cup. They are not concerned about him aspirating because his gag reflex and cough are much stronger. They just think it might be better to start slow with the thickened liquids. His occupational therapist is coming in the morning and she will give us some ideas on how to work with him more specifically. I think the bottle will be easier than the sippy cup, but we shall see. The speech therapist wants to see James in their clinic in a few weeks so they can watch him eat in a non-doctor's office setting.

In short, James is able to start getting fluids. I hope and pray that he picks it up as fast as he picked up the solids (about 2 weeks). His next appointment with his surgeon is June 17th. If he is eating fluids well by then, he has a chance of getting his j-tube out soon after that. Here's hoping...