Ask a doctor - What are the common causes of dysphagia in children?

Q. What are the common causes of dysphagia in children?

Doctor Answer is medically reviewed by SecondMedic medical review team.

Answered by Secondmedic Expert

Dysphagia, or difficulty swallowing, is a common issue in children. It can have multiple causes and often requires medical diagnosis and treatment. Here are some of the most common causes of dysphagia in children:

Muscular Disorders: Muscle weakness or paralysis resulting from conditions such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injuries, and various myopathies can cause difficulty with muscle movements necessary for safe swallowing.

Structural Problems: Swallowing difficulties may be due to structural problems with the child’s mouth, throat or esophagus such as a cleft palate; narrowing (stricture) of the food pipe (esophagus) due to scarring; growths called webs that limit how far food can pass down the throat; injury to the nerves that control muscles used in swallowing; or an enlarged thyroid gland (goiter).

Gastrointestinal Issues: Conditions like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), peptic ulcer disease, Crohn’s Disease which cause inflammation within the digestive tract can also lead to dysphagia in children if left untreated for long periods of time .

Neurological Disorders : Stroke , dementia , brain tumours , trauma , infection and certain degenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease all affect either directly or indirectly on a persons ability to swallow . Difficulties could manifest themselves in both voluntary acts like chewing correctly but also involuntary reflexive responses including coughing and gagging .

Medication Side effects : Certain medications including those taken for depression anxiety / sleep disturbances heartburn etc., may have unforeseen side effects leading to interruption during feeding / eating ie dysphagia

It is important that any signs of difficulty with swallowing should be discussed with your primary healthcare provider who will refer you appropriately should they feel your case warrants further investigation - so please don't hesitate !