Temporal Associations between Caregiving Approach Behavioral Symptoms and Observable Indicators of Aspiration in Nursing Home Residents with Dementia

摘要

ObjectivesDysphagia, or impaired swallowing, is common in nursing home (NH) residents with dementia and contributes to malnutrition and diminished quality of life. Dysphagia also commonly leads to aspiration or passage of food or fluids into the airway, which can result in aspiration pneumonia—a leading cause of death for people with dementia. Currently available interventions for dysphagia aim to modify the risk of aspiration events primarily by modifying diet and positioning to improve the safety of an individual’s swallow. However other potentially modifiable contextual factors relevant to mealtime care within NH settings that may influence the occurrence of aspiration events, such as the nature of caregiving interactions or occurrence of dementia-related behavioral symptoms, have not been examined. To address this gap, we examined the temporal associations between caregiving approach and behavioral symptoms as antecedents to observable indicators of aspiration among nursing home (NH) residents with dementia.