Found out today that Clark needs another surgery on his jaw. The plate and screws have come loose. Lots of nasty drainage. He is not happy about this at all. This time he will have his jaw wired shut. This is really worrying him. How will he eat, and take his meds? They said he'll use a syringe with a tube to eat pureed food. But the meds...I have to call tomorrow and find out how we will manage that. And brushing teeth? If anyone has any suggestions, please post.

I am wiped out tonight. This was one long day. Surgery is scheduled for Monday, the 15th.

Anita,

I'm really sorry to read this. Can he use a Waterpik to clean his mouth? Can he get liquid form of his meds? How long with his jaw be wired shut? I'm sure others will come along with suggestions.

I'll be keeping you both in my thoughts and prayers. If I think of any other suggestions, I'll let you know.

The water pik is a good ides! Thanks, Susan. I think he'll have to be wired for at least a month.

Anita, you should be able to crush most meds. Those you can't are able to be formulated in liquid form. Talk to your pharmacist and they will be able to advise you. Sometimes you may have to switch to another generic to enable either a liquid formula or a crushable/ dissolve able one.
When Kris was solely PEG fed I gave him all his pills crushed or dissolved. The chemist was impressed that I dissolved his Calcitriol capsule by melting it with boiling water to release the oil it contained. Truly, this is easily solvable for you both. So sorry to hear that Clark has to endure further surgery.
Tammy

Hi, Tammy, I did crush his meds when he was on a PEG but I must ask if crushing and dissolving them will irritate his throat as he swallows. And asking for liquid forms of some of his meds will help, too. Thanks for responding.

Hi Anita, I shouldn't expect any throat irritation from crushed meds. Put them into juice/milk etc. would Clark consider an NG tube if needed?
Tammy

Hi Anita

I�m so sorry Clark continues facing problems with his jaw. The initial surgery is tough enough, let alone ongoing drama.

Since my original surgery in 2007 all my medication has been liquid. 7.5 years later I still can�t swallow tablets crushed, or otherwise. After my PEG tube was removed, rather than put me through further stress and trauma trying to swallow medication 4 or 5 times a day, my doctors prescribe liquid medications.

Irrespective of what any general practitioner or surgeon said, there is no way I would put myself through a surgery similar to the one planned for Clark without the NG tube or PEG stomach tube. The daily struggle with nutrition is difficult enough without making it harder for him. To clean and rinse my mouth cavity after surgery I use a water pik and alcohol free mouthwash.

Please pass on my best wishes to Clark for a successful surgery.

Thinking of you both.

Karen

Wishing all the best for Clark.

Smack me if I'm asking a stupid question..l I'm assuming he's had a titanium plate put in... Is there no chance the could use his eon natural bone tissue - plates are notorious for problems and rejection. Eventually is own natural brown would grow into his bone graft. No more messy carpenter issues (being facetious here but really? Screws coming loose??? Ergh)
Hugs

So how is Clark doing?

Back in 1998 or '99 (well before the cancer & other resulting issues I've had), I had my jaw wired shut too. I was playing slo-pitch and had hit the ball to the shortstop. This dude was the 6'6" fireman type - the sandlot hero. Anyways, I was running to first base and he whips the thing towards first. I could HEAR the ball travelling towards me. The woman playing first base got scared of it and ran away, and the ball hit me on my jaw. Nice compound fracture, but my teeth survived. Anyways, I have a titanium plate under my skin on my chin, and was wired shut for six weeks. I had the type with internal plates and they were closed together with rubber bands. After a few days it loosened up a bit so I could pop a straw through the gap. Eventually I could squeeze thin noodles through there and swallow them.

I bought a blender and tried all sorts of things. Ultimately I found that most of the recipes were not all that palateable. Trying to blenderize a chicken thigh or breast, some mashed potatos and a bunch of gravy just didn't work for me. It was either too thick, or just gross if you have to add a whole bunch of liquid to make it flow. I lived on Boost and milkshakes for a few weeks. Kinda like my first few weeks after my partial glossectomy and during radiation treatments.

If I had to deal with it now, I'd add some protein shakes and some homemade juices made with my handy dandy masticating juicer, some soups and once thin noodles can be slurped down, add those for that nice fulfulling carbohydrate hit.

Waterpik will be ok for the outside, but since his teeth are wired together, all you can really do to rinse the inside is used a mouth rinse of some sort. Not sure if you've been given any suggestions from your team of doctors, nurses and dental folk, but I've been using a rinse with half a teaspoon of baking soda dissolved in about half a cup of water. I see there are other recipes around that have a lower concentration, or either add or substitute salt for the baking soda. {EDIT} I should add that you might want to check that any mouth rinse solution you chose won't affect whatever they are using to wire the jaw shut {/EDIT}