The nurse notes that a client consistently coughs while eating and drinking.

The nurse notes that a client consistently coughs while eating and drinking.

• A. Risk for aspiration
• B. Risk for infection
• C. Risk for dehydration
• D. Imbalanced nutrition

Answer: (A)

Coughing during meals signals a swallowing problem that allows food or liquid to enter the airway, which creates an immediate risk of aspiration. When material enters the airway, the body responds with coughing to try to clear it, but frequent coughing with eating indicates that swallowing is not reliably protecting the airway. This makes aspiration the primary concern, since it directly threatens the lungs and can lead to complications like aspiration pneumonia or choking if not addressed. The other potential problems—infection, dehydration, and imbalanced nutrition—may develop as a consequence of swallowing difficulty, but they are downstream effects rather than the immediate issue shown by coughing during meals. In practice, this finding prompts actions to reduce aspiration risk: assess swallowing function, keep the patient upright during meals, offer small bites and sips, consider thickened liquids or a modified diet if prescribed, monitor for additional coughing or choking episodes, and involve speech-language pathology for a formal swallow evaluation.

Coughing during meals signals a swallowing problem that allows food or liquid to enter the airway, which creates an immediate risk of aspiration. When material enters the airway, the body responds with coughing to try to clear it, but frequent coughing with eating indicates that swallowing is not reliably protecting the airway. This makes aspiration the primary concern, since it directly threatens the lungs and can lead to complications like aspiration pneumonia or choking if not addressed.

The other potential problems—infection, dehydration, and imbalanced nutrition—may develop as a consequence of swallowing difficulty, but they are downstream effects rather than the immediate issue shown by coughing during meals.

In practice, this finding prompts actions to reduce aspiration risk: assess swallowing function, keep the patient upright during meals, offer small bites and sips, consider thickened liquids or a modified diet if prescribed, monitor for additional coughing or choking episodes, and involve speech-language pathology for a formal swallow evaluation.