Tube Feeding Basics

This section of the website includes pages intended for those individuals first learning about feeding tubes, who are making the decision to tube feed or not, and who are brand new to tube feeding. It includes sections on New to Tube Feeding, making the tube feeding decision, the members of your medical team, downloadable Educational Materials, Myths and Facts about tube feeding, and some specialized medical Terms to Know.

Are you confused by the alphabet soup of feeding tube types? What’s an NG-, ND-, or NJ-tube? How about a G-, GJ-, or J-tube? This page provides a brief overview of the basic tube types, and we also have extensive sets of pages on Nasal Tubes, G-tubes, GJ-tubes, and J-tubes.

Many children who need feeding tubes require surgery or other procedures to place or remove the tube. This section includes information on moving from NG-tube to G-tube, G-tube surgery, the Nissen fundoplication surgery, converting a G-tube to a GJ-tube, Site Closure surgery when a tube is no longer needed, and Pyloroplasty surgery.

Your child may receive many tests in the process of receiving a feeding tube or determining an overall diagnosis. There are also many different diagnoses that require tube feeding. This section of the website includes information on many of the common tests children with feeding tubes may receive, and many of the types of conditions that require tube feeding. Pages include Common Tests, a Condition List of hundreds of conditions requiring tube feeding, and information on Swallowing Disorders, Motility Disorders, Eosinophilic Disorders, Chromosome and Genetic Disorders, and Mitochondrial Diseases.

Obviously, diet and nutrition is hugely important for children with feeding tubes. This section of the website includes information on Calories and Hydration, types of Formulas, Feeding Breast Milk through a feeding tube, Blended or Blenderized Diets, and Ketogenic Diets.