Got a Tweet about this today.  Thought I would pass on.

 

From the Journal of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: Gastrostomy use in motor neurone disease (MND): A review, meta-analysis and survey of current practice

Theocharis Stavroulakis, Theresa Walsh, Pamela J. Shaw & Christopher J. Mcdermott (on behalf of the Progas Study)

Academic Neurology Unit, Department of Neuroscience, Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN),

The University of Sheffield, Sheffield

, UK

Correspondence: T. Stavroulakis, Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), The University of Sheffield,

385A Glossop Road, Sheffield S10 2HQ

, UK. Fax: 0114 222 2290. E-mail: xxxxxx@sheffield.ac.uk

Gastrostomy feeding is commonly used to support MND patients with dysphagia. In this paper we review three main methods of gastrostomy insertion (PEG, RIG, PIG); conduct a meta-analysis of mortality data following gastrostomy; and present a survey of current practice. A review of the literature revealed a lack of high quality evidence to indicate the optimal method and timing for gastrostomy insertion in patients with MND. A survey of 20 MND clinics demonstrated a clinic-based variability of gastrostomy practices due to factors such as clinician preference, availability of method, and patient respiratory function. The meta-analysis demonstrated that the estimate of the absolute difference in mortality rates was 2.1% higher for PEG (− 6.3%, + 11.2%), suggesting that RIG and PIG methods may be safer than PEG. These results and observations highlight the need for more research to evaluate and compare the safety of the differerent gastrostomy insertion methods in MND care.

Read More: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/17482968.2012.723722

Read More: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/17482968.2012.723722

 

 

 

 

Alisa

 

Alisa Brownlee, ATP

Assistive Technology Specialist

ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) Association, National Office and Greater Philadelphia Chapter

215-631-1877

 

Follow me on Twitter: @alsassistivetec

 

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