Enteral feeding tubes: not perfect but necessary

Enteral feeding tubes are a useful alternative to the oral dietary route for delivering feed to individuals with functional guts who are unable to meet their nutritional requirements through oral intake alone. These individuals may have neurological conditions such as stroke or multiple sclerosis (MS), which can affect swallowing ability, or obstructive pathology such as cancer of the head and neck, which may require radiation treatment with the potential to affect swallowing reflexes. Enteral feeding tubes may also be needed in those with ‘failure to thrive’, dementia or a learning disability, and in those who are unable to sustain their necessary weight. These feeding tubes are required not only to deliver feed to these patients, but also to provide water and medications. In some instances, they are the only means of survival.