Swallowing Therapy

Swallowing difficulties can be caused by different medical conditions, and they can greatly impact your daily life. Our specialists can help patients who have difficulty swallowing at any stage.

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Texas ENT Specialists offers therapy to help make swallowing easier and to improve your safety while eating and drinking. We specialize in providing customized swallowing therapy regimens to patients. Your unique therapy may include exercises, medication, and other treatments to help you restore a better quality of life.

How Swallowing Therapy Works

Your swallowing therapy will be unique to your needs. Swallowing issues can take place at different stages in the swallowing process. This can include:

Oral phase - This is the first stage of swallowing. It includes chewing or sucking liquids or food and moving them into the throat.
Pharyngeal phase - This phase is the start of swallowing and moving food or liquid down the throat.
Esophageal phase - This is the phase where food moves from the throat through the esophagus and into the stomach.

Depending on what stage of swallowing you’re experiencing difficulty with, the therapy can include exercises to help reposition food, swallowing maneuvers, and medication to treat any underlying disorders, or a modification of your diet or food consistency.

Conditions Treated Through Swallowing Therapy

Swallowing therapy can help patients who have difficulty swallowing liquid or food learn to swallow more easily and safely.

Benefits of Swallowing Therapy

Difficulty swallowing can make daily life challenging. You may not be getting adequate food or nutrients, and you may also be putting yourself in danger. Difficulty swallowing can lead to choking, which can, of course, be extremely dangerous. Swallowing therapy can give patients more control over their abilities and can help them to lead safer lives.

With 18 convenient locations across the greater Houston & San Antonio areas, we’re never far away.

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About Texas ENT Specialists

Texas ENT Specialists is one of Houston’s top-rated providers for ENT care. Our offices provide treatment for various conditions that affect the ear, nose, throat, voice, and more. We have 15 office locations across the Houston area to make your access to high-quality care as convenient as possible. At Texas ENT Specialists, we have set ourselves apart in the industry through:

Personalized Treatment

We fully customize each treatment to meet your needs because we believe that you’re unique — and we believe your ENT care should be, too.

Top-Rated Physician Network

Each of our 15 Houston office locations is staffed with highly-trained providers who are fellowship-trained and independently board-certified.

Centers of Excellence

Our locations are equipped with the latest medical technology to help us provide comprehensive care, and we work to deliver a seamless patient experience from the moment you contact us to the moment you say goodbye.

Continuity of Care

We work to ensure you gain long-term relief, never providing only short-term solutions.

Who Is a Candidate?

Candidates for swallowing therapy are those who have difficulty swallowing common foods or liquids. This difficulty may be the result of another condition such as cancer in the mouth, throat, or esophagus, neurological conditions, or certain injuries of the head and neck. Contact Texas ENT Specialists to see if you are a candidate.

Your Swallowing Therapy Treatment

Swallowing therapy with Texas ENT Specialists is a completely customized treatment. At your first appointment, your provider will discuss your difficulties to help determine what stage they lie in and what condition they may be the result of.

After this, they will work with you to determine a regime that can help you begin to swallow or swallow more easily. Treatment may be a combination of therapies, but will include exercises of the mouth, tongue, and jaws. Most patients require repeated visits to begin swallowing safely.

Swallowing Therapy FAQ's

When should I start treatment?

Because swallowing difficulties can lead to malnourishment or choking, it’s important to seek treatment as soon as you begin to notice any issues. Early intervention can help make therapy easier.

Are children able to have swallowing treatment?

Yes, Texas ENT Specialists can also provide children with swallowing therapy.