Intermittent oro-esophageal tube feeding for cerebral small vessel disease patients with dysphagia: A randomized controlled study

Objectives: This study reported the clinical effect of intermittent oro-esophageal tube feeding (IOE) versus nasogastric tube feeding (NGT) on cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) patients with dysphagia.

Methods: This randomized controlled study included 60 CSVD patients with dysphagia who received routine treatment. Participants were randomly divided into the intervention group (with IOE, n = 30) and the control group (with NGT, n = 30). The study lasted 15 days for each patient and assessments were conducted at baseline and after treatment. The primary outcome was dysphagia including Penetration-Aspiration Scale and Functional Oral Intake Scale. The secondary outcomes were 1) nutritional status, including (i) body mass index, (ii) serum albumin, (iii) hemoglobin, 2) aspiration pneumonia, 3) activities of daily living (ADL), 4) quality of life (QOL).

Results: At admission, there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in baseline assessment. After treatment, both groups showed significant improvement in dysphagia, nutritional status, ADL, and QOL. There were significant differences (P < 0.05) between the two groups in dysphagia, nutritional status [body mass index: (19.53 ± 1.40) kg/m² vs. (18.35 ± 1.54) kg/m²; albumin: (42.06 ± 2.64) g/L vs. (39.49 ± 2.77) g/L; hemoglobin: (128.85 ± 6.34) mg/L vs. (123.14 ± 7.92) mg/L], aspiration pneumonia (6.67% vs. 33.33%), ADL [(69.07 ± 6.33) vs. (63.56 ± 6.75)], and QOL [(78.07 ± 8.64) vs. (72.48 ± 7.76)]. There were no severe adverse events during the treatment.

Conclusions: Compared to NGT, IOE demonstrated advantages in improving dysphagia, nutritional status, ADL, QOL, and aspiration pneumonia in CSVD patients with dysphagia who received routine treatment.