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What is Intravenous Feeding?

Caitlin Kenney
Caitlin Kenney

Intravenous feeding, also called parenteral nutrition, delivers food to the body through the veins. This puts nutrition directly into the bloodstream, avoiding the digestion processes. Patients may require intravenous feeding if their digestive system is unable to pass or absorb food. This is can be the result of trauma, surgery, damage to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, disorders that render the bowels non-functioning, a coma, or short gut syndrome.

The gastrointestinal tract is the system of organs that ingests, digests, and excretes food. This begins with the mouth, which takes in food and begins breaking it down with chemicals in the saliva and chewing. The food, now called the bolus, is then moved through the pharynx in the throat into the esophagus, which extends from the throat to the stomach. The stomach continues to break down the bolus, turning into chyme. The chyme is then taken into the intestines, or bowels, which are responsible for absorbing nutrients into the bloodstream and preparing the waste materials for excretion.

Intravenous feeding may be required if a patient is experiencing chronic vomiting.
Intravenous feeding may be required if a patient is experiencing chronic vomiting.

When this system is not functioning properly, the patient must receive food through enteral feeding or parenteral nutrition (PN). During enteral feeding, a tube is inserted into the patient’s gastrointestinal tract, usually through the nose, stomach, or small intestine. The nose and stomach feeding tubes bypass the mouth and throat, but still make use of the stomach. A jejunostomy, in which the feeding tube is surgically placed in the small intestine, bypasses the mouth, throat, and stomach, but still makes use of the bowels. Because it presents less risk, enteral feeding is often preferred to parenteral feeding.

Side effects associated with intravenous feeding may include gall bladder inflammation.
Side effects associated with intravenous feeding may include gall bladder inflammation.

Certain patients are ineligible for enteral feeding and require total parenteral nutrition (TPN), which relies solely on intravenous feeding. This procedure is most commonly performed on patients whose GI tract is paralyzed due to surgery. Intravenous feeding may also be needed if the patient has chronic vomiting or diarrhea, or if a severely undernourished patient requires surgery. Lack of development in the GI tract of a baby, birth defects in the digestive system, bowel obstructions, and inflammation of the bowels, such as from Crohn’s disease, can also necessitate TPN.

Intravenous feeding may be necessary for a patient whose GI tract has been paralyzed from surgery.
Intravenous feeding may be necessary for a patient whose GI tract has been paralyzed from surgery.

Patients needing intravenous feeding will usually receive a local anesthetic before the doctor inserts a feeding tube, or catheter, into the vein. Doctors usually use the subclavian vein, located below the collarbone, the jugular vein, located in the neck, or a large vein in the arm. The tube delivers a small amount of liquid nutrition continuously to keep the vein open. Larger amounts of nutrition are infused roughly every few hours, depending on the patient’s feeding schedule. A device called an infusion pump is used to control the timing and amount of nutrition administered.

Intravenous feeding is done through an IV when a patient is unable to digest food normally.
Intravenous feeding is done through an IV when a patient is unable to digest food normally.

When the patient regains strength, she can often to return to normal eating. Some patients, however, require long term intravenous feeding. These chronic PN patients may be able to self-administer nutrition at home. Side effects, though uncommon, include blood clots, cholecystitis, or gall bladder inflammation, bacterial and fungal infections, and liver failure due to excessive glucose in the nutritious solution.

Discussion Comments

Talentryto

For those who do rely on tube feeding for nutrients, it's important that they are monitored for weight loss and infection at the tube site. This is especially important because many people in this condition are not in good health and cannot easily fight off infections.

Heavanet

This type of method for delivering nutrients is not idea for many reasons. Side effects may include failure to thrive or severe loss of weight. Fortunately, iv feeding is usually a temporary necessity for people who are healing form surgery or trauma.

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    • Intravenous feeding may be required if a patient is experiencing chronic vomiting.
      By: tibanna79
      Intravenous feeding may be required if a patient is experiencing chronic vomiting.
    • Side effects associated with intravenous feeding may include gall bladder inflammation.
      By: blueringmedia
      Side effects associated with intravenous feeding may include gall bladder inflammation.
    • Intravenous feeding may be necessary for a patient whose GI tract has been paralyzed from surgery.
      By: Tyler Olson
      Intravenous feeding may be necessary for a patient whose GI tract has been paralyzed from surgery.
    • Intravenous feeding is done through an IV when a patient is unable to digest food normally.
      By: wacharaphong
      Intravenous feeding is done through an IV when a patient is unable to digest food normally.
    • Intravenous feeding may be used for a person in a coma.
      By: Claudio's Pics
      Intravenous feeding may be used for a person in a coma.
    • A device called an infusion pump is used to control the timing and amount of nutrition administered.
      By: Max Tactic
      A device called an infusion pump is used to control the timing and amount of nutrition administered.
    • A patient who is suffering from bulimia may require intravenous feeding.
      By: Sylvie Bouchard
      A patient who is suffering from bulimia may require intravenous feeding.
    • The stomach is one location for a tube insertion.
      By: stockshoppe
      The stomach is one location for a tube insertion.