A short guide to... Nasal feeding tubes in dogs
Updated:
MAR 01, 2017
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Simple to use and remarkably effective, feeding a sick dog via an intra-nasal tube can be an invaluable adjunct in a variety of clinical situations and is often a decisive factor in ensuring a positive outcome in many cases; in this paper Joris Robben and Chiara Valtolina highlight the practicalities involved for optimal results.
Joris Robben
DVM, PhD, Dipl. ECVECC, Dipl. ECVIM-CA
Dr Robben graduated from Utrecht University in 1988 and completed his PhD on canine insulinomas in 2004. Since 2014 he has been vice-president of the European College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care. He is currently associate professor in Emergency and Critical Care at Utrecht University.
Chiara Valtolina
DVM, Dipl. ECVECC, Dipl. ACVECC
After graduating in 2000 from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Milan, Italy, Dr Valtolina completed a residency at the Royal Veterinary College in London before becoming a Diplomate of both the American (2009) and European (2015) Colleges of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care. She currently works in the Intensive Care Unit at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Utrecht.
Key Points
- Nasal feeding tubes are easy to place and allow easy short-term enteral feeding in dogs that are unwilling or unable to eat voluntarily.
- Both nasoesophageal and nasogastric tubes can be used; there are advantages and disadvantages with both options.
- It is essential to ensure the tube is correctly positioned on placement and at regular intervals during use.
- A simple maintenance regime can help minimize problems with the feeding tube whilst in situ.
Introduction
Nasal feeding tubes are easy to employ in small animal practice and are suitable for various clinical scenarios; they are intended for short-term (1-7 days) use and will allow early enteral feeding to be commenced in a recuperating patient, although only liquid diets can be administered as the diameter of the feeding tube is limited by the diameter of the patient’s ventral meatus.
Inserting a nasal feeding tube is quicker and safer than placement of an esophageal tube, especially where a patient is not stable enough to undergo general anesthesia, or where surgery may result in excessive bleeding – e.g., if a coagulopathy is present. A feeding tube will allow the clinician to determine if the gastrointestinal tract of an anorexic patient will tolerate enteral feeding, and to assess the factors that contribute to optimal feeding (i.e., amount fed, diet composition, and if continuous rate infusion (CRI) or bolus feeding is better).
There are various factors to consider when selecting a suitable feeding tube (Table 1), and the clinician should select the most appropriate one for the patient. The other items required for tube placement are basic and are shown in Figure 1.
Table 1. Feeding tube options.
Figure 1. Equipment needed for tube placement: 2% lidocaine (with 0.5% epinephrine), lidocaine spray, 2 mL syringe, feeding tube, 10-20 mL syringe, waterproof marker, elastic self-adhesive bandage, tape, suture material, needle holder, scissors.
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How to reference this publication (Harvard system)?
(2017) “A short guide to.. Nasal feeding tubes in dogs”, Gastroenterology - Veterinary Focus - Vol. 27(1) - Mar. 2017. Available at: https://www.ivis.org/library/veterinary-focus/gastroenterology-veterinary-focus-vol-271-mar-2017/a-short-guide-to-nasal-feeding-tubes-dogs (Accessed: 11 September 2024).
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