Endoscopic Techniques for Obtaining Enteral Access

In the absence of contraindications, enteral feeding is recommended for patients who are expected to be intolerant of oral feedings beyond 7 days. Enteral access can be accomplished by a variety of means, including surgical, endoscopic, or radiographic methods. This review focuses on endoscopy-guided options for enteral access. These methods include gastric feeding, which can be accomplished by orogastric, nasogastric, or percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube placement, and postpyloric feeding, accessed through oral or nasal jejunal tubes, percutaneous gastrostomy with a jejunal extension, or direct percutaneous jejunostomy. The indications, techniques, complications, and comparative data of these placement options are outlined, and special clinical considerations (including establishing access in patients with dementia or cirrhosis and those on anticoagulation) are discussed. This review contains 5 figures, 1 table, and 33 references. Key words: direct percutaneous jejunostomy, endoscopy, enteral access in cirrhosis, enteral access in dementia, enteral feeding, enteric access, nasogastric feeding tubes, percutaneous endoscopic gastrojejunostomy tubes, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tubes