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Invited Review: Enteral Access
Author(s) -
Minard Gayle
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
nutrition in clinical practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.725
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1941-2452
pISSN - 0884-5336
DOI - 10.1177/0115426594009005172
Subject(s) - medicine , enteral administration , laparotomy , fluoroscopy , duodenum , parenteral nutrition , laparoscopy , jejunum , endoscopy , intensive care medicine , general surgery , surgery
The enteral route is the preferred method of nutrition support in patients with functional gastrointestinal tracts. Many techniques for obtaining enteral access are available, and the decision regarding which one to use depends on several issues, including anticipated duration of support, aspiration risk, and local expertise. Using laparotomy, laparoscopy, fluoroscopy, or endoscopy, tubes can be placed into the stomach, the duodenum, and the jejunum. Nasogastric and nasoenteric tubes are useful for short‐term supplementation; however, patients needing support for more than 6 weeks may be better served with a more permanent tube. In this review, specific methods for obtaining enteral access are discussed along with their advantages and disadvantages.