Effect of gastrointestinal motility and feeding tube site on aspiration risk in critically ill patients: A review

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this literature review is to examine the effect of the interaction between gastrointestinal motility and feeding site on the aspiration risk in critically ill, tube-fed patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: A single answer to the question of the preferred feeding site is not likely to be found because the degree of aspiration risk varies significantly according to individual variations in gastrointestinal motility and multiple pre-existing and treatment-related risk factors. However, regardless of the feeding site, it is ultimately regurgitated gastric contents that are aspirated into the lungs. For this reason, the clinical assessment of greatest interest is the evaluation of gastric emptying, usually monitored clinically by measuring gastric residual volumes. CONCLUSION: Current recommendations for monitoring residual volumes and preventing aspiration are provided.