Feeding alternatives in patients with dementia: examining the evidence.

Abstract

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tubes are being placed with increasing frequency in the United States among elderly patients with dementia. Health care providers believe there may be long-term benefits for enteral feeding in this population, yet previous study of this topic has failed to yield any convincing evidence to support this hypothesis. In this study, we review the evidence regarding outcomes for artificial enteral feeding in older individuals with dementia. We found that there is a lack of evidence supporting artificial feeding in the specific outcomes of survival, pressure ulcers, nutrition, and aspiration pneumonia. A brief discussion regarding hand feeding is included. The data suggest that hand feeding may be a viable alternative to tube feeding in elderly patients with dementia, although a direct comparison trial of the 2 interventions is lacking.

• Authors: Donald Garrow, Pam Pride, William Moran, Jane Zapka, Elaine Amella, Mark Delegge
• Journal: Clinical gastroenterology and hepatology : the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol) Vol. 5 Issue 12 Pg. 1372-8 (Dec 2007) ISSN: 1542-7714 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 18054747 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)

Topics

• Aged
• Dementia (mortality, therapy)
• Endoscopy (methods)
• Enteral Nutrition (methods)
• Gastrostomy (methods)
• Humans
• Survival Rate
• United States (epidemiology)