Emergency Presentations for Gastrostomy Complications Are Similar in Adults and Children

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Emergency Medicine
• Gastroenterology
• Adult Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Gastrostomy tubes (GTs) are crucial for nutritional support in various patient populations.
• Complications related to GTs frequently necessitate emergency department (ED) visits.
• Understanding age-specific patterns of GT complications in the ED is essential for optimizing patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize and compare the patterns of ED presentations for gastrostomy tube complications in adult and pediatric patients.
• To identify differences in the types and frequencies of GT complications between these age groups.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective chart review was conducted.
• Data were collected from 70 patients (36 adults, 34 children) with GT complications presenting to 3 Australian EDs over a 2-year period.
• Presentations were categorized into infectious, mechanical, vomiting, and other issues.

Main Results:

• A total of 122 ED visits for GT complications were analyzed.
• Infections were more frequent in children (36%) compared to adults (21%).
• Vomiting was significantly more common in adults (23%) than in children (8%).
• Mechanical issues constituted the majority of complications in both groups (adults 48%, children 52%).

Conclusions:

• Gastrostomy tube complications presenting to the ED are primarily infectious and mechanical.
• Adults presenting with GT complications show a higher incidence of vomiting compared to children.
• Further research may explore specific interventions to mitigate these age-related differences in complication patterns.