A gastrostomy is an artificial opening connecting the stomach cavity to the anterior abdominal wall. A gastrostomy tube is inserted into it, this is a special medical device through which food and medicinal solutions are administered directly into the stomach, bypassing the oral cavity and esophagus.
At the Hospital of the MC of the PAA of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Endoscopy Department, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy has been successfully performed for more than 5 years.
Indications for a gastrostomy implantation:
- Inoperable tumor of the pharynx or esophagus;
- Swallowing dysfunction - the patient cannot swallow food;
- Severe damage to the nervous system, the consequence of which was the patient’s inability to eat independently (cancerous brain tumors, stroke, myasthenia gravis, etc.);
- Scar changes in the esophagus, resulting in the formation of places of pathological narrowing that cannot be expanded;
- Maxillofacial traumas in which the patient cannot eat independently.
Contraindications for gastrostomy implantation:
- obesity (class III);
- coagulation failures;
- peritonitis - an inflammatory process in the abdominal cavity;
- ascites – free liquid accumulation in the abdominal cavity;
- exacerbation of gastric ulcer;
- previous operations on the stomach wall (with a large volume of intervention);
- pathological enlargement of the liver and/or spleen;
- increased pressure exerted on the portal vein walls;
- peritoneal dialysis - cleansing the body in case of kidney dysfunction through the anterior abdominal wall;
- severe forms of renal and cardiovascular failure.
In addition to medical indications, gastrostomy has a number of other advantages. Gastrostomy is more aesthetic - it is not visible under clothing, which allows the patient to save his quality of life and gives him the opportunity to return to their usual lifestyle. It is important to note that the procedure for a gastrostomy implanting is minimally invasive and takes 15-20 minutes under intravenous sedation.
