Do vegetative patients have swallowing function?

In general, whether a vegetative patient has swallowing function mainly depends on the individual's medical condition. In medicine, vegetative state is known as persistent vegetative state, referring to a prolonged disorder of consciousness caused by severe brain injury, cerebral ischemia and hypoxia, or neurodegenerative diseases. Some vegetative patients can swallow saliva spontaneously, while others have completely lost their swallowing ability. The specific analysis is as follows:

1. Present

In vegetative patients, the cerebral hemispheres and their functions are damaged, but brainstem functions are relatively preserved. Main symptoms include loss of cognitive function, spontaneous breathing, and cyclical states of wakefulness and sleep. These patients lack conscious activity and the ability to actively eat; they cannot express feelings of hunger or fullness and do not initiate eating. However, most patients can still retain some basic survival functions such as spontaneous respiration, eye opening and closing, swallowing, vomiting, and urination/defecation—though these actions are all unconscious. For example, swallowing occurs only reflexively and without awareness.

2. Absent

Vegetative patients represent a special population who typically retain only certain primitive neural reflexes and have completely lost cognitive abilities. They generally show no response to people or objects in their environment, lack voluntary movement, and remain bedridden for extended periods. Nutrition is primarily provided through a nasogastric or gastrostomy tube, and most of these patients lack autonomous swallowing function. For vegetative patients, it is also important to prevent the risk of aspiration when attempting oral feeding.

If family members observe signs suggesting recovery of consciousness in a vegetative patient, they should contact a physician for evaluation to determine whether these signs indicate possible awakening.