Thickened Fluids
Thickened fluids and thickened drinks are often used for people with dysphagia, a disorder of swallowing function. The thicker consistency makes it less likely that individuals will aspirate while they are drinking. Individuals with difficulty swallowing may find that liquids cause coughing, spluttering, or even aspiration, and that thickening drinks enables them to swallow safely. Patients may be advised to consume thickened liquids after being extubated. Liquid thickness may be measured by two methods, with a viscometer or by line spread test. Thickening amount There are several levels of consistency/viscosity and these have historically varied by country, although the launch of the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) aims to remove this variation. According to the IDDSI, the thickness of a drink can be tested by measuring the amount that pours out of a 10ml syringe in 10 seconds. * 0 – Thin liquids: Unthickened, such as water or juice. Comm ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dysphagia
Dysphagia is difficulty in swallowing. Although classified under " symptoms and signs" in ICD-10, in some contexts it is classified as a condition in its own right. It may be a sensation that suggests difficulty in the passage of solids or liquids from the mouth to the stomach, a lack of pharyngeal sensation or various other inadequacies of the swallowing mechanism. Dysphagia is distinguished from other symptoms including odynophagia, which is defined as painful swallowing, and globus, which is the sensation of a lump in the throat. A person can have dysphagia without odynophagia (dysfunction without pain), odynophagia without dysphagia (pain without dysfunction) or both together. A psychogenic dysphagia is known as phagophobia. Classification Dysphagia is classified into the following major types: # Oropharyngeal dysphagia # Esophageal and obstructive dysphagia # Neuromuscular symptom complexes # Functional dysphagia is defined in some patients as having no organic c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pulmonary Aspiration
Pulmonary aspiration is the entry of solid or liquid material such as pharyngeal secretions, food, drink, or stomach contents from the oropharynx or gastrointestinal tract, into the trachea and lungs. When pulmonary aspiration occurs during eating and drinking, the aspirated material is often colloquially referred to as "going down the wrong pipe". Consequences of pulmonary aspiration include no injury at all, chemical pneumonitis, pneumonia, or even death from asphyxiation. These consequences depend on the volume, chemical composition, particle size, and presence of infectious agents in the aspirated material, and on the underlying health status of the person. In healthy people, aspiration of small quantities of material is common and rarely results in disease or injury. People with significant underlying disease or injury are at greater risk for developing respiratory complications following pulmonary aspiration, especially hospitalized patients, because of certain factors ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Extubation
Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic tube into the trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs. It is frequently performed in critically injured, ill, or anesthetized patients to facilitate ventilation of the lungs, including mechanical ventilation, and to prevent the possibility of asphyxiation or airway obstruction. The most widely used route is orotracheal, in which an endotracheal tube is passed through the mouth and vocal apparatus into the trachea. In a nasotracheal procedure, an endotracheal tube is passed through the nose and vocal apparatus into the trachea. Other methods of intubation involve surgery and include the cricothyrotomy (used almost exclusively in emergency circumstances) and the tracheotomy, used primarily in situations where a prolonged need for airway support is anticipated. Because it is an invasive and uncomfortable medi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Viscometer
A viscometer (also called viscosimeter) is an instrument used to measure the viscosity of a fluid. For liquids with viscosities which vary with flow conditions, an instrument called a rheometer is used. Thus, a rheometer can be considered as a special type of viscometer. Viscometers can measure only constant viscosity, that is, viscosity that does not change with flow conditions. In general, either the fluid remains stationary and an object moves through it, or the object is stationary and the fluid moves past it. The drag caused by relative motion of the fluid and a surface is a measure of the viscosity. The flow conditions must have a sufficiently small value of Reynolds number for there to be laminar flow. At 20°C, the dynamic viscosity (kinematic viscosity × density) of water is 1.0038 mPa·s and its kinematic viscosity (product of flow time × factor) is 1.0022mm2/s. These values are used for calibrating certain types of viscometers. Standard laboratory viscometers for l ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Thickener
A thickening agent or thickener is a substance which can increase the viscosity of a liquid without substantially changing its other properties. Edible thickeners are commonly used to thicken sauces, soups, and puddings without altering their taste; thickeners are also used in paints, inks, explosives, and cosmetics. Thickeners may also improve the suspension of other ingredients or emulsions which increases the stability of the product. Thickening agents are often regulated as food additives and as cosmetics and personal hygiene product ingredients. Some thickening agents are gelling agents (gellants), forming a gel, dissolving in the liquid phase as a colloid mixture that forms a weakly cohesive internal structure. Others act as mechanical thixotropic additives with discrete particles adhering or interlocking to resist strain. Thickening agents can also be used when a medical condition such as dysphagia causes difficulty in swallowing. Some of these people may benefit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Xanthan Gum
Xanthan gum () is a polysaccharide with many industrial uses, including as a common food additive. It is an effective thickening agent and stabilizer that prevents ingredients from separating. It can be produced from simple sugars by fermentation and derives its name from the species of bacteria used, '' Xanthomonas campestris''. History Xanthan gum was discovered by Allene Rosalind Jeanes and her research team at the United States Department of Agriculture and brought into commercial production by CP Kelco in the early 1960s under the trade name Kelzan, remaining the only manufacturer in the US. It was approved for use in foods in 1968 and is accepted as a safe food additive in the US, Canada, European countries, and many other countries, with E number E415 and CAS number 11138-66-2. Xanthan gum derives its name from the species of bacteria used during the fermentation process, '' Xanthomonas campestris''. Uses The addition of 1% xanthan gum can produce a significant incr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Informed Consent
Informed consent is an applied ethics principle that a person must have sufficient information and understanding before making decisions about accepting risk. Pertinent information may include risks and benefits of treatments, alternative treatments, the patient's role in treatment, and their Right to refuse medical treatment, right to refuse treatment. In most systems, healthcare providers have a legal and ethical responsibility to ensure that a patient's consent is informed. This principle applies more broadly than healthcare intervention, for example to conduct research, to disclose a person's medical information, or to participate in high risk sporting and recreational activities. Within the United States, definitions of informed consent vary, and the standard required is generally determined by the state. As of 2016, nearly half of the states adopted a reasonable patient standard, in which the informed consent process is viewed from the patient's perspective. These standards ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Consistometer
A consistometer is a device for measuring the physical consistency of a substance. It is most often used for foods such as ketchup and other thick fluids or semi-fluids. Consistency is typically measured in terms of rate of flow, as opposed to viscosity which is measured in regard to force within units like poise. Consistometry readings can roughly correspond with viscosity measurements, but some substances such as carob flour have little to no effect on consistometer flow but can increase apparent viscosity. People's sensory perception of a food seems to track more with the consistency than the viscosity. Using a consistometer is also useful on non-homogeneous substances that would give poor readings with a viscometer. One of the most common types is the Bostwick consistometer which was invented by bacteriologist (1893–1958). This device consists of a rectangular container with two sections: one of a set volume and the other at a slight decline with centimeter mea ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Medical Treatments
Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, and Health promotion, promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention (medical), prevention and treatment of illness. Contemporary medicine applies biomedical sciences, biomedical research, medical genetics, genetics, and medical technology to diagnosis (medical), diagnose, treat, and prevent injury and disease, typically through pharmaceuticals or surgery, but also through therapies as diverse as psychotherapy, splint (medicine), external splints and traction, medical devices, biologic medical product, biologics, and Radiation (medicine), ionizing radiation, amongst others. Medicine has been practiced since Prehistoric medicine, prehistoric times, and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |