Tube Talk
Thank you to everyone who sent material for the “Tube Talk” column. Anyone who is interested in participating can send their tips, questions and thoughts about tube feeding to: Tube Talk, c/o The Oley Foundation, 214 Hun Memorial MC-28, Albany Medical Center, Albany, NY 12208; or E-mail Dahlr@mail.amc.edu.
Information shared in this column represents the experience of that individual and should not imply endorsement by the Oley Foundation. The Foundation strongly encourages readers to discuss any suggestions with their physician and/or wound care nurse before making any changes in their care.
G/J-Tube Helps with Reflux
My son, Abe, has a rare disease called Pelizaeus Merzbacher Disease (PMD). It is a form of leukodystrophy. He had a g-tube placed at the age of 5. He refluxed and ended up having pneumonia five times last winter. By chance they did an x-ray with dye and found he was aspirating every time he was fed.
Because he was so sick, they didn’t want to do any surgery. Instead they threaded the tube through his current g-tube site down into his jejunum. He now has a g-port, j-port and balloon port. The g-port is drained into a bag so he can’t reflux on anything, and the formula goes into the j-port. He has gained weight for the first time in several years and is very healthy. I wish I had known about this option years ago. I hope someone out there can benefit from his story.
Carla Schauer
208 773-5115
carlaschauer@verizon.net