Interventions for maintaining nasogastric feeding after stroke: An integrative review of effectiveness and acceptability

Aims and objectives To investigate the effectiveness and acceptability of interventions for maintaining nasogastric tubes in adult stroke patients. Background Internationally, incidence of cerebral vascular disease continues to increase and stroke is the largest cause of complex disability in adults. Dysphagia is common following a stroke which necessitates feeding via a nasogastric tube. Nasogastric tubes are not well tolerated by stroke patients and may be frequently dislodged. Hence, interventions such as tape, the nasal bridle/loop or hand mittens may be used to maintain nasogastric tube position. However, evidence around the effectiveness and acceptability of these interventions has not been reviewed and synthesised. Design Integrative literature review. Method Database searches in MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Cochrane and EMBASE; manual reference list searches. Results Seven studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in the review. Evidence for the effectiveness of nasal bridle/loop and hand mittens to maintain nasogastric tube position in patients after a stroke is spare and methodologically poor, and especially limited around hand mittens use. There is insufficient evidence about the acceptability of both nasal bridle/loop and hand mittens among stroke patients. Conclusion Current clinical practice is underpinned by assumptions around the acceptability of nasal bridle/loop and hand mittens to secure nasogastric tubes. This results in reliance on consensual judgement between professional, patients and their families to guide their use among individuals with dysphagia after stroke. Further research is required to assess the effectiveness of hand mittens and acceptability of both nasal bridle/loop and hand mittens among stroke patients to inform guideline development. Relevance to clinical practice Given the lack of evidence on the acceptability of hand mittens and nasal bridle/loop among stroke patients to inform evidence‐based guidelines and protocols, healthcare professionals should reach consensus on their use by exercising clinical judgement and through consultation with patients (if possible) and their families.