Thickening in Pediatrics: When, Why and How

Many children in the early intervention program require modified diets to ensure their health and safety. This presentation will explore best practices for use of thickening liquids in the pediatric population. Specifically, it will address recent implementation of IDDSI standardization (The International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative 2016 @https://iddsi.org/framework/) at Lurie Children’s Hospital with infants and toddlers. The presentation will focus on explaining how
therapists in Early Intervention can partner with a child's medical team to support the child's participation in mealtimes. There will be a special emphasis on describing how Early Intervention therapist's can collaborate with a child’s medical team while working in a child's natural environment and helping parents to understand and implement modified diets.
The talk will include hands-on learning of the thickening and IDDSI testing process as well as a group question-and-answer session.