Speech Therapy Performance in Oral Feeding Reintroduction in a Child Diagnosed with Whooping Cough-A Case Report

Introduction: Whooping cough, caused by Bordetella pertussis, is an acute respiratory disease, transmissible, and important cause of death in childhood. This bacterium enters on the human body by the upper airway, and settles on mucosa of the respiratory tract (trachea and bronchi) causing ciliary paralysis and local necrosis. These complications caused increased mucus secretion resulting in clinical signs lasting between 1 and 6 weeks: paroxysmal cough, cyanosis, apnea, tongue protrusion, vomiting after coughing, and among others. Its diagnosis is made in the acute phase and treatment is medication. Hospitalization is necessary, especially for children younger than 1 year. The most common complications are pneumonia, encephalitis, and malnutrition.

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the possibility of the reintroduction of oral feeding of a child diagnosed with whooping cough, on clinical evaluation with speech therapy.

Resumed Report: A 6-month-old female infant was admitted to hospital in the city of Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil, through the ER after breathing with difficulty, fever and vomiting. The infant was diagnosed with whooping cough, she used medication. Currently, she is on third week of hospitalization and makes use of a nasogastric feeding tube. On clinic evaluation of speech therapy found impossibility of reintroduction of oral feeding.

Conclusion: The speech therapy evaluation has proven crucial for the analysis of the possibility of reintroduction of oral feeding. About the whooping cough the child had difficulty breathing and frequent vomiting. These clinical signs can cause difficulty in feeding, initiate dysphagia, and consequent pulmonary aspiration. For the case described, oral feeding was recommended only for food training momentary.

Keywords: bordetella pertussis; deglutition disorders, professional practice.