Treatment Options For Dysphagia

Feeding Tube Placement

As mentioned, dysphagia patients are a great risk for malnutrition. Therefore, they may need a feeding tube placement, otherwise known as percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy. In this procedure, the doctor places the tube into the abdominal wall through an incision. This way, patients can get the food into their stomach without having to attempt swallowing it.

A 2016 study demonstrated the improvement of dysphagia grades in subjects following treatment with percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy. In a review from 2012, a number of trials concluded this method was better at food delivery compared to nasogastric tube feeding. However, in one study, subjects treated with a nasogastric feeding tube saw better results compared to those who received a stent placement. The Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry also reports nasogastric feeding helped ease dysphagia in stroke subjects during a 2003 trial.

Some researchers, however, are skeptical about the use of feeding tubes as it can cause complications. The doctor should provide details on what to expect with getting a feeding tube placement.

Learn more about how dysphagia is treated now.