Feeding Tube

What Is a Feeding Tube?

Patients come to Stanford Health Care from all over the U.S. because of our experience in delivering innovative nutrition strategies to people who are very sick.

If your condition makes eating difficult, a feeding tube provides an alternative means for meeting your body's nutrition needs. There are many reasons you may need this, especially if:

• You are not able to swallow your foods safely
• You are at risk for losing or have lost a significant amount of weight
• You are not able to get adequate nutrition from the foods you eat

At Stanford Health Care, we specialize in:

• Innovative nutrition strategies to stimulate your gastrointestinal tract so that you can come off the feeding tube when your body is ready
• Personalized care to help you take care of your tube and make sure you are receiving adequate nutrition
• Ongoing support, including expert coordination with home care providers, so that you have all the formula and supplies you need to keep your therapy on track

A feeding tube works by delivering specialized liquid nutrition formula directly into your stomach or intestines. Depending on your condition, you may need to use a feeding tube for a few weeks, a few months or the rest of your life. Our nutrition experts customize your formula based on your individual needs.

There are many different types of feeding tubes. We most commonly use a percutaneous endoscopic jejunostomy (PEJ) tube. A PEJ tube allows specially formulated liquid nutrition to bypass your stomach and go directly to your small intestine (jejunum).