Hospice nurse Julie on TikTok mentioned death rattles as among the signs that can be observed when one is dying of natural causes. According to her, it refers to terminal secretions.
What Is a Death Rattle?
Death rattle can happen when a dying person is unable to swallow, cough, or otherwise remove mucus and saliva from the back of their throat; also, respiratory tract secretions may increase. The inability to clear fluids like phlegm and saliva from the back of the throat causes the death rattle.
Normally, people have little issue clearing these secretions, but a dying person might not have the strength to do so.
As a person approaches death, their breathing patterns fluctuate, and their breathing may oscillate between silent and loud. A dying person might take one deep breath and hold it for a few seconds. This strained breathing could amplify the death rattle.
The tone fluctuates. The sound could be like a cracking wet noise that gets louder when the person breathes. In other instances, it could resemble a loud gurgling or snoring sound or a gentle moaning that occurs with each breath.
The individual making the death rattle typically doesn't experience any pain or suffering despite the sound being unpleasant.
The death rattle warns of impending death. A person's lifespan after the death rattle starts can vary depending on a wide range of conditions.
Nonetheless, a study discovered that the dying process had an average duration of 25 hours and was marked by signs including disorientation, restlessness, and death rattle.
The study found that people receiving hospice care experience a somewhat lengthier dying process than people receiving hospital care. In addition, not everyone experiences the death rattle.
Only around 40% of patients during the dying phase and about 35% of patients during the final 24 hours of life reported experiencing the death rattle.
Death Rattle Symptoms and Management
As mentioned, death rattle can be observed in someone approaching death. Signs may include moaning, snoring, or rattling sounds.
Some other signs that may be observed are the following:
- confusion
- lung congestion
- incontinence
- a change in the pattern of breathing or difficulty breathing
- a difference in the odor of a person
- dark bruising
- cold and bluish extremities
- agitation
- sleepiness
- drifting in and out of consciousness
- mottled skin
Death rattle is not painful, however, it might not be easy for loved ones to witness it. Since this is a natural stage of dying, there is no treatment, but there are some things you can do to ease the sound.
- Turn the person on their side.
- Lift the head to allow the fluids to drain.
- Use moist swabs to moisten the lips.
- Drain oral secretions using a suction device.
- Reduce the amount of fluid consumption.
- Give medicine to get rid of the secretions.
For many terminally ill patients, the death rattle is a normal component of the dying process. There is no proof that the person dying is in pain or discomfort, but the noisy breathing can be upsetting to family and other loved ones watching the death.
Although a death rattle cannot be avoided, you can reduce its sound by following the above-mentioned suggestions.
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