Center for Digestive Diseases and Swallowing Disorders

56-45 Main Street
On the courtyard level
Flushing,New York 11355

Phone: 718-670-2716  
Fax: 718-661-7493 

Serving Queens and the Metro New York Area

The Center for Digestive Diseases and Swallowing Disorders specializes in coordinated patient care, education and research that can only be accomplished through interdisciplinary team involvement. Our team consists of specialists from all areas of medicine including speech-language pathology, gastroenterology (adult and pediatric), radiology, nutrition, otolaryngology, thoracic surgery, pulmonology and neurology.

The Center for Digestive Diseases and Swallowing Disorders fills a great need in the borough of Queens, as well as the New York metropolitan area, by providing comprehensive management of patients with swallowing disorders, in addition to expert endoscopic services. An interdisciplinary approach to the care of patients with digestive and swallowing disorders firmly establishes the Center as a regional center of choice for physicians, allied practitioners and their patients. 

Swallowing problems arise from a wide range of causes

• Neurological causes such as stroke,amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a.k.a.Lou Gehrig’s disease), Parkinson’s disease and cerebral palsy
• Traumatic causes such as head injury
• Infectious and inflammatory causes such as acid reflux, viral conditions
• Structural abnormalities such as diverticula, esophageal stricture, or tumor
• Medication-induced abnormalities related to antipsychotics, muscle relaxants, or anticholinergics
• Pediatric feeding and swallowing problems due to congenital abnormalities and prematurity

Signs and symptoms of swallowing problems are numerous. These include, but are not limited to the following:

• Difficulty controlling saliva or food in the mouth
• Difficulty accepting food in the mouth
• Feeding refusal
• Difficulty chewing
• Coughing before, during or after swallowing
• Weight loss
• Frequent upper respiratory infections
• Pneumonia (resulting from overt and silent aspiration)
• A gurgly or wet voice after food or liquid intake
• Pain upon swallowing
• Regurgitation of food or liquid after meals

Left undiagnosed and untreated, unidentified swallowing problems can lead to chronic and/or significant pulmonary and nutritional complications. The Center for Digestive Diseases and Swallowing Disorders is dedicated to the management of patients with digestive diseases and swallowing disorders, providing comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic intervention across the age continuum, from pediatrics to geriatrics.

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