title: Percutaneous radiologic gastrostomy versus nasogastric tube in critically ill patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the feasibility of percutaneous radiologic gastrostomy in critically ill patients and to assess the rates of complications, esophagitis and gastroesophageal reflux when compared with nasogastric tube.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty patients admitted to a medical intensive care unit and who were supposed to require gastric tubing for at least 14 days were randomized to have a nasogastric tube or a percutaneous radiologic gastrostomy. Patients with gastrostomy contraindication or gastric tubing for more than 2 days were excluded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No major complication requiring invasive treatment was observed. The nasogastric tube was more prone to failure as defined by the impossibility to place or to replace the allocated tube (P = 0.04) and to tube dysfunction (P<0.001), whereas gastrostomy was associated with increased incidence of minor local complications (P<0.001). Ten days after allocation, the rates of esophagitis (15%) and gastroesophageal reflux (24%) were not significantly different between the two groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In selected critically ill patients, percutaneous radiologic gastrostomy carried a low risk of severe complication but we found no benefit in terms of esophagitis and gastroesphageal reflux between early performed gastrostomy and the nasogastric tube.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department, Angers University Hospital, 4 rue Larrey, Angers 49033, France. pmroy@chu-angers.fr
authors.forename: Pierre-Marie
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Person
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Souday
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kerkeni
authors.forename: Nina
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dib
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Asfar
mesh_terms: D016638:Critical Illness / Q000628:therapy*; D004941:Esophagitis / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000453:epidemiology; D005774:Gastrostomy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D007441:Intubation, Gastrointestinal / Q000009:adverse effects; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D016896:Treatment Outcome