Esophageal bezoar formation due to solidification of enteral feed administered through a malpositioned nasogastric tube: Case report and review of the literature

• Published in: Acta anaesthesiologica Taiwanica Vol. 50; no. 4; pp. 188 - 190
• Main Authors: Tawfic, Qutaiba Amir, Bhakta, Pradipta, Date, Rohit Raman, Sharma, Pradeep Kumar
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: China (Republic : 1949- ) Elsevier B.V 01.12.2012
• Subjects: Adult; bezoars; Bezoars - etiology; enteral nutrition; Enteral Nutrition - adverse effects; Esophagus; Humans; Intubation, Gastrointestinal - adverse effects; Male; nasogastric tube; enteral nutrition; nasogastric tube; bezoars; esophagus
• ISSN: 1875-4597; 1875-452X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.aat.2012.12.002

Enteral feeding is now standard and routine practice in intensive care. The use of a nasogastric tube for enteral feeding is generally considered to be safe, but tubes with small bores can sometimes lead to aspiration or passage clogging when malpositioned in sedated patients who are on long-term mechanical ventilation. Thus, accurate confirmation of correct placement is mandatory in such patients. This is not always the case, but this faulty practice can lead to serious complications in the absence of potential bezoar-forming medicines or gastrointestinal pathology. We present here one such interesting case of a patient who developed esophageal bezoar due to a malpositioned nasogastric tube for administering a casein-containing feed. In addition, we present a review of the literature.