gutsandgrowth

Outcomes with Enteral Nutrition

July 14, 2022 7:00 am

Notice: At this time, gutsandgrowth intends to post blogs 2-3 times per week rather than daily.

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In this retrospective study (2013-2018), the authors examined outcomes in 105 children treated with a 90:10 enteral feeds (90% formula).

Key findings:

44/105 (42%) patients completed 8–12 weeks
After induction, 18 continued EN maintenance with a 80:20 then 70:30 protocol; however, only 10 remained on EN at 6 months and 4 remained on EN at 12 months

The associated editorial (pg: 1-2) make several points:

While EEN is effective and safe, this study and others have shown poor adherence
It is unclear how exclusive enteral nutrition needs to be in order to be effective. And, many patients instructed to receive 90% of their calories as formula are likely consuming higher amounts of table foods
We still are working out which foods need to be excluded

My take: This study shows that EEN is NOT a practical option for most patients beyond induction. Only 4 patients remained on EEN at 12 months.

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