PEG or RIG feeding (through stomach) - anyone experienced this?

[ProfessorDent]

My mother is in hospital, she was having trouble eating in the nursing home, though I put that down to her being dehydrated/them sacking the chef/poor care and so on. She went into A&E a while back. After weeks of my having to go in and get her going again, she is eating (that's another story) but the doctor seems itching to get a PEG inserted, where she can be 'topped up' through passing food through a tube in the stomach. It seems a bit excessive, under the circs. Anyone had experience of this with relatives?

My grandmother had a stroke and lost the use of her whole left side and couldn't eat much through her mouth (only a small amount of mushed up food). She kept pulling the nose tube out so the doctors asked whether the family would allow them to operate so she could be fed through her stomach via a PEG. They seemed really keen and said it would be for the best as she was obviously distressed by the nose tube.
6 months later she's had another stroke and in a comatose state. My mother says in hindsight she would've said no to the PEG as keeping her alive in this state is never something my grandmother wanted and to go and see her every day is heart breaking. I don't really see her logic in that as she still would've been fed through the tube in her nose so we would've still been in the same position.
I think if your mother can still eat then there should be no real reason for her to have a PEG. I think it's a very drastic decision if she can still eat and is getting what she needs. The food they put into the PEG can be used as a drink as the bottles I've seen come with straws. Perhaps this might be an alternative if she's not getting what she needs from just foods hat she eats? I don't know how nice they taste though
Have you researched PEGs on the internet? Or maybe alternatives that you can discuss with the doctor? I'd probably ask why they want to make her undergo an operation when it sound like she is still able to eat and get nutrition via mouth

Theres a peg/ tube feeding thread on sn chat
My ds is peg fed and I started the thread over 2 years ago I think we are on thread 3?

It was 2 years yesterday since he had a peg put in

Hmm, can you find a link in the Chat page? I guess it's all about pegs being fitted in infants, however, from the search I have done?

The doctor's line is that it is a safeguard for a future event when she may not be able to eat, problem is on that basis you could go round most of the nursing homes and flog pegs to old dears.

I will try....

its on the sn chat.
My ds is fed via peg and it was a hell of a journey at first but hes doing soooo much more better than before.
I do think they are better than ng tubes and help with topping up.

did this work

I am involved in the procedure that puts the PEG in place. There are very strict guidelines before the procedure is done. There are a lot of risks involved with a PEG.

The only ones that have been put in lately have been for people about to have treatment for head and neck cancer and for those who have had a stroke or similar and are not able to swallow. They are not put in elderly people as a safeguard for a future event.

If the doctor still feels one is necessary then it will need to be approved by the nutrition team (specialist doctors and nurses). They will only approve it if there are no other alternatives.

Thanks callow, that is interesting. Perhaps I have it wrong though, they mentioned PEG but also RIG - do you know anything about that?

It is a sign of how things are that they keep calling it PEG, so I think of it as such, when they can they throw up in the discharge meeting: Hey, no it's a RIG and that's different, pressure pressure...

And do 'buttons' get used instead, I have seen that on the kids' tube thread...?

PS Thanks Ilovemonsters, but I think a tube is different possibly for kids, I will read it though. With that it's a sense that it's short term until they get back to how they should be and can swallow again; with my mother she'll have it to the grave.

My mother had one (she suffered from a neurodegenerative condition and had swallowing problems) and it was pretty straightforward for us to operate and didn't cause her any problems.

If your mother is physically able to eat, though, that's a different matter... I'd definitely press them further on what exactly the need is.

Its different but the same iyswim
A button is a smaller verson of the peg (well almost the same, does the sams job at least)

either way I just wanted to make sure that you know where we are if you have any specific feeding questions and 'trouble shooting' (leaking peg, oozing site, pain etc)

Thanks everyone.

Can they press ahead with a PEG feed in the face of the relatives' wishes?Who gets the casting vote?

I was a bit startled that they wanted to get my Dad's power of attorney over her, on the basis that they could go to work on him at the meeting; he's 85 and a rogue tradesman's wet dream, very susceptible.