Reduced Pneumonia Risk in Advanced Dementia Patients on Careful Hand Feeding Compared With Nasogastric Tube Feeding

To compare survival and pneumonia risk among hospitalized patients with advanced dementia on nasogastric tube feeding (NGF) vs careful hand feeding (CHF) and to examine outcomes by feeding problem type.

Retrospective cohort study.

Advanced dementia patients aged ≥60 years with indication for tube feeding admitted to 2 geriatric convalescent hospitals between January 1, 2015, and June 30, 2019.

Comparison on the effect of NGF and CHF on survival and pneumonia risk using Kaplan Meier survival analysis and Cox proportional hazards models.

Of the 764 patients (mean age 89 years, 61% female, 74% residential care home residents), 464 (61%) were initiated on NGF and 300 (39%) on CHF. The primary feeding problem types were dysphagia (50%), behavioral feeding problem (33%), or both (17%). There was no difference in 1-year survival rate between NGF and CHF groups (36% vs 37%, P = .71) and survival did not differ by feeding problem type. Nasogastric tube feeding was not a significant predictor for survival (adjusted hazard ratio 1.15, 95% CI 0.94-1.39). Among 577 (76%) patients who survived to discharge, pneumonia rates were lower in the CHF group (48% vs 60%, P = .004). After adjusting for cofounders, NGF was a significant risk factor for pneumonia (adjusted hazard ratio 1.41, 95% CI 1.08-1.85). In subgroup analyses, NGF was associated with increased pneumonia risk for patients with both dysphagia and behavioral feeding problem (P = .01) but not in patients with behavioral feeding problem alone (P = .24) or dysphagia alone (P = .30).

For advanced dementia patients with feeding problems, there is no difference in survival between NGF and CHF. However, NGF is associated with a higher pneumonia risk, particularly for patients with both dysphagia and behavioral feeding problem. Further research on how the feeding problem type impacts pneumonia risk for patients on NGF is needed.