Enteral Feeding in Children

Indications for enteral feeding in children:

• neurological damage / prematurity
• increased metabolic requirements for nutrients – e.g. burns, congenital heart disease
• fail to achieve nutritional requirements – failure to thrive, cystic fibrosis
• require unpalatable specialised feeds to treat medical condition – e.g. metabolic or liver disease

Contraindications to enteral feeding in children:

• non-functioning gastrointestinal tract

Types of enteral feeding:

1. nasogastric – ease of intubation
2. gastrostomy – long-term feeding
3. jejunostomy – poor gastric motility / high gastric residues

Form of enteral feeds:

• bolus
• gravity drip
• pump-assisted continuous

Full nutritional assessment

• breast milk
• infant formula
  • + fortification, > 6 months to 2 years old
    • thereafter, proprietary formula