Intermittent oroesophageal vs. nasogastric tube feeding in frail elderly with dysphagia: a retrospective comparative study.

BACKGROUND

Dysphagia affects 15%-20% of community elderly, 50%-75 % of nursing-home and >80 % of hospitalized patients; 60 % cases stem from neurologic disease. We compared intermittent oro-esophageal (IOE) vs. nasogastric tube (NGT) feeding in 120 frail dysphagic elders (Jun-Dec 2024).

METHODS

The sample size was calculated based on the expected prevalence of aspiration pneumonia (25 vs. 8%), with 60 participants enrolled per group. Frail elderly patients with dysphagia were randomly allocated to the intermittent oro-esophageal or nasogastric tube group using a random number table. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 26.0, including t-tests, chi-square tests, and multivariate logistic regression, with P < 0.05 considered significant.

RESULTS

Baseline comparable. Both groups improved albumin and swallowing equally, yet IOE cut aspiration pneumonia from 23.3 % (NGT) to 8.3 %, enhanced oral intake and MNA-SF without added mucosal injury. Frailty, age, stroke history and NGT predicted complications; Kubota grade-3 patients gained most from IOE.

CONCLUSION

IOE is safer and more effective than NGT for frail elderly dysphagia, reducing pneumonia and restoring oral feeding.