Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy placement using the pull-through or push-through techniques: is the second pass...

The pull-through and push-through techniques widely used for placing a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) require two passes of the gastroscope. The second pass is considered necessary to assess the correct positioning of the internal bumper. The aim of the present study was to verify whether the second pass is in fact necessary, or whether it could be omitted in most cases.

Eighty patients undergoing pull-through or push-through PEG placement were included in this prospective study, and were randomly assigned to two groups. In the first group, two passes of the gastroscope were carried out, while in the second group the second pass was omitted and the position of the internal bumper was manually assessed by finger palpation of the abdominal wall after the feeding tube had been pulled out through the abdomen. If finger palpation was not considered satisfactory, a control gastroscopy was carried out. In the other cases, plain radiographs of the abdomen were carried out within six hours of the procedure.

Thirty-nine patients underwent two-pass PEG placement, and 41 received one-pass PEG placement. In one patient who had a one-pass procedure, the finger palpation was not considered satisfactory; however, a control gastroscopy showed that the internal bumper was correctly placed. In all other one-pass PEG patients, plain radiography of the abdomen showed that the internal bumper was at an adequate distance from the abdominal wall. No major or minor complications associated with the procedure were observed in either group. Bowel sounds reappeared within 24 hours of the procedure in all patients except for one in the two-pass group, in whom they reappeared after 36 hours. One wound infection, treated with systemic antibiotics, occurred in each group within 30 days of the PEG placement. The procedure time saved in the one-pass PEG group averaged 1.5 minutes.

One-pass PEG placement appears to be as safe as the classic pull-through and push-through PEG methods, and can be used routinely to make the procedure quicker and reduce the discomfort for the patient, as well as reducing the risks and costs associated with the second pass of the gastroscope. A control gastroscopy can be reserved for patients with morbid obesity, or for cases in which finger palpation is not considered satisfactory.