Abstract

ATENCIO, Diana Patricia; BLANCO PEREZ, Ángela Gabriela  and  OTERO REGINO, William. Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy in elderly, indications, safety and outcomes. Rev Col Gastroenterol [online]. 2015, vol.30, n.1, pp.3-10. ISSN 0120-9957.

Introduction: Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomies (PEG) are performed more and more frequently in elderly patients suffering from problems with swallowing. The procedure is used regardless of patients’ physical, mental and functional status, but little is known about complications and outcomes here in Colombia. Objective: The purpose of the study is to determine indications for performance of PEG, rate of complications, and outcomes in short and long term follow-ups (five years). Patients and methods: This is a retrospective and descriptive study of patients over the age of 60 who were hospitalized for percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy at the Clínica Fundadores between January 2008 and June 2013. Patients younger than 60 years of age, those who had open gastrostomies, and those whose PEG procedure failed were excluded. Patients medical records were reviewed and telephone follow-ups of patients were conducted. Results: Of the 135 patients with indications for PEG, 96 patients were included. The mean age was 77.5 ± 9 years, and 38 of the patients were men (39.5%). The reasons for performance of PEG were inability to swallow due to a cerebrovascular event (32.89%), dementia (30.26 %) and other causes (36.85). Hypertension was the most common comorbidity. The most common complications associated with PEG were gastrointestinal symptoms (32.9%). There was no mortality associated with the procedure. Conclusions: PEG is a safe way for elderly patients to receive enteral tube feeding (ETF), but we found no benefit for patients with dementia. Interdisciplinary management prior to the procedure is important to determine whether or not ETF should be used for elderly patients.

Keywords : Elderly; percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy; complications.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in English | Spanish     · English ( pdf ) | Spanish ( pdf )