Current opinion in clinical nutrition and metabolic care
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Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care · May 2007
ReviewUse of small-bore feeding tubes: successes and failures.
Early enteral nutrition is the preferred option for feeding patients who cannot meet their nutrient requirements orally. This article reviews complications associated with small-bore feeding tube insertion and potential methods to promote safe gastric or postpyloric placement. We review the available bedside methods to check the position of the feeding tube and identify inadvertent misplacements. ⋯ The risk of misplacement with blind bedside methods for small-bore feeding tube insertion requires a change in hospital protocols.
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Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care · May 2007
Practicalities of nutrition support in the intensive care unit.
Nutrition support improves clinical outcomes in the critically ill and our understanding of its effects has advanced significantly over the last few years. Three recently published evidence-based guidelines have made generally consistent and thorough recommendations to assist clinicians in providing nutrition support. This review will focus on various aspects of these recommendations, concentrating on the practicalities of nutrition support in the intensive care unit, such as its optimal mode and composition. ⋯ Intensive care unit patients should have nutrition support based on recent evidence-based guidelines with a preference for nasogastric feeding. If intolerance occurs, pro-motility drugs and small bowel feeding should be attempted. Clinicians should also consider carefully the composition of the nutrition support regimen with regard to lipid content (especially eicosapentaenoic acid and gamma-linolenic acid), antioxidants, glutamine and other micronutrients.