pH testing of feeding-tube aspirates to determine placement.
Although radiologic confirmation of tube placement remains the "gold standard," there is growing evidence that pH testing of feeding-tube aspirates can reduce (although not totally eliminate) reliance on x-rays used for this purpose. This article describes that evidence and tells how it was obtained. Reducing the number of x-rays needed to confirm tube position can have far-reaching financial benefits.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015400:Clinical Nursing Research; D004750:Enteral Nutrition / Q000295:instrumentation*; D005260:Female; D005745:Gastric Acidity Determination; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007441:Intubation, Gastrointestinal / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000451:nursing*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D015203:Reproducibility of Results