G-Tube Stabilizer

A g-tube stabilizer. What is it, you may ask? It is a vital part of modern-day health care. But to understand what a g-tube stabilizer is, you have to understand the g-tube first. A g-tube is a condensed word for a gastrostomy tube.

Basic Information

The device is inserted into the stomach to provide food, nutrients, and medication to those with poor voluntary oral intake, dysphagia, or intestinal failure. There are many applications of the g-tube, but the most common would be to administer nutrition, fluids, and medications directly into the patient’s body.

Types

There are various types of g-tubes for different medical conditions, such as nasal tubes and abdominal tubes. These apparatuses get implanted through the abdominal wall/ stomach for those with an abdominal tube device.

Incisions

Incisions for these tubes (gastrostomy) can either be surgically placed or percutaneously placed. They make an opening in the skin called a stoma to place the feeding tube into the stoma.

Complications

But despite being able to provide enteral nutritional support, many complications still arise. Short-term complications may include diarrhea, leakage of stomach contents, stoma dermatitis, and more, whereas long-term complications may comprise a broken tube, tube occlusion, wound infections, et cetera. It may also cause skin irritation, reduced healing times, and discomfort.

Current Solutions

Usually, these complications lead to nursing interventions such as the use of tape and gauze. In urgent cases, the tube may need to get extracted. Although these are solutions, they do not directly address the issue. These are merely temporary solutions to the problem, and therefore, we need g-tube stabilizers to hold the g-tube in place so that no further complications occur.