Differences in Durability, Dislodgement, and Other Complications with Use of Low-Profile Nonballoon Gastrostomy Tubes in Children

Abstract

Background: Nonballoon low-profile gastrostomy tubes (GTs) are used for enteral nutrition support in a subset of pediatric patients with feeding difficulties when use of balloon GTs is problematic. Different nonballoon low-profile tube types are available, but comparative studies are lacking. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study comparing complications and outcomes between different low-profile nonballoon GTs at a pediatric tertiary care center over 10 years. Results: We identified 43 patients with 160 tube placement procedures, including 93 (58%) BARD tubes (type A) and 67 (42%) Mini-ONE tubes (type B). Accidental tube dislodgment occurred exclusively with type B (33% vs 0%, P