Feeding - nasogastric tube; NG tube; Bolus feeding; Continuous pump feeding; Gavage tube
A nasogastric tube (NG tube) is a special tube that carries food and medicine to the stomach through the nose. It can be used for all feedings or for giving a person extra calories.
You'll learn to take good care of the tubing and the skin around the nostrils so that the skin doesn't get irritated.
Follow any specific instructions your health care provider or nurse gives you. Use the information below as a reminder of what to do.
If your child has an NG tube, try to keep your child from touching or pulling on the tube.
After your nurse teaches you how to flush the tube and perform skin care around the nose, set up a daily routine for these tasks.
Flushing the tube helps release any formula stuck to the inside of the tube. Flush the tube after each feeding, or as often as your nurse recommends.
Follow these general guidelines:
Contact your health care provider if any of the following occur:
Smith SF, Duell DJ, Martin BC, Gonzalez L, Aebersold M. Nutritional management and enteral intubation. In: Smith SF, Duell DJ, Martin BC, Gonzalez L, Aebersold M, eds. Clinical Nursing Skills: Basic to Advanced Skills. 9th ed. New York, NY: Pearson; 2016:chap 16.
Ziegler TR. Malnutrition: assessment and support. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 204.
BACK TO TOPReview Date: 11/3/2022
Reviewed By: Michael M. Phillips, MD, Emeritus Professor of Medicine, The George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Health Content Provider
06/01/2025
|
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, for Health Content Provider (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is an independent audit to verify that A.D.A.M. follows rigorous standards of quality and accountability. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial policy, editorial process and privacy policy. A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics. This site complied with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information from 1995 to 2022, after which HON (Health On the Net, a not-for-profit organization that promoted transparent and reliable health information online) was discontinued. |
The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997- 2024 A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.