Swallowing Difficulties

The Speech Therapist will take a case history of your swallowing difficulties and assess your swallowing in the clinic. The therapist may send you for:

• Videofluoroscopy
• FEES (Fibreoptic Endoscopic Examination of Swallowing)

Videofluoroscopy

• It is a swallowing assessment using a x-ray so that we can see you chewing and swallowing the food and liquids.
• You will be asked to eat small amounts of a soft food, biscuit / bread, thickened liquid and liquid. A white powder called barium will be mixed into the food so that we can see the food when you swallow it.
• The examination will be recorded on videotape so that the speech therapist can review the tape later and also show it to the patient.

FEES (Fibreoptic Endoscopic Examination of Swallowing)

• This is a swallowing examination using a fiberoptic endoscope.
• The scope is inserted through you nose to enable the examiner to see your throat.
• You will be given some food and liquids mixed with blue food colouring to eat/drink so that we can assess your swallowing.