[National registry of Home Enteral Nutrition in 2003]

To communicate the information available by the NADYA-SENPE Working Group from patients on Home Enteral Nutrition (HEN) in our country during the year 2003.

The data were collected through a closed questionnaire included in the web site of the Working Group (www.nadya-senpe.com) available only by the authorized users. Variable included were: epidemiological information, the indication to prescribe this treatment, the access path, the specific nutritional formula used, the treatment duration, the complications and hospital readmission related to the nutritional treatment, the follow-up and the quality of life.

We register 3,858 patients that belong to twenty-one hospitals. Mean age from those adults 66.2 +/- 18.9 years, and from those younger than 14, 6.0 +/- 4.3 years. Neurological and neoplasic diseases were the diagnostics more frequents (38.9% and 37.4%, respectively). Oral nutrition was the preferential rout used for the enteral nutrition (54.7%) followed by naso-enteral tube (26.6%), and only in 17.6% we used ostomy tubes. Polymeric was the enteral formula mainly utilized (80.1%). The mean time on HEN was 6.6 +/- 4.3 months; the 28.8% of patients stayed in the treatment for less than 3 months, 21.2 % between 3 and 6 months, and 50.0% more than 6 months. Patients were followed mainly by Nutritional Support Unit from the reference hospital (73.1%). While the reference hospital supplies the material (62.4%), reference hospital pharmacy (46.8%) and public pharmacies (32.0%) provides the enteral formula. Complications related to enteral nutrition included change of enteral tube (44.5%), gastrointestinal complications (30.5%), mechanical complications (21.7%), and the metabolic one (3.3%). These complications were followed by 0.02 hospitalizations/patient. At the end of the year, 54.7% of patients were in the HEN programme, and in 35.2 % HEN was finish due to accept oral conventional alimentation (49.2%) or by deceased of patients (40.9%). While 26.6% of the patients were confined to bed or armchair, 19.7 % no or light discapacity degree was observed.

We found a persistence of these treatment in our country. Neurological and neoplasic diseases were the more frequent diagnosis in patients analysed. The high prevalence of cancer patients could be the main cause of oral access for enteral nutrition. Change of enteral tube was the more frequent complication observed during this treatment.