Esophagostomy tubes have replaced pharyngostomy tubes in veterinary medicine; they are well-tolerated, economical, and not likely to cause gagging or airway obstruction.
Nutritional intervention is instrumental to supportive care for most critically ill patients. These patients have a greater protein requirement due to increased consumption of structural proteins as a source of energy.1,2 Malnourished or otherwise undernourished animals are at increased risk for immunosuppression, hormonal imbalance, infection, and aspiration pneumonia.3
The Critical Difference
Through our increased understanding of the consequences of malnutrition in the critically ill, we have realized that nutritional intervention can be a life-saving supportive care measure. As we develop more sophisticated techniques and therapies for specific diseases, nutritional support (or lack thereof) often becomes the determining factor in the outcome of critical illness.
Related Article: Nutritional Support for the Vomiting Patient
How Much Is Enough?
The goals of nutritional therapy are to provide adequate energy, minimize breakdown of structural proteins, and provide the essential nutrients required for metabolic processes-many commercial diets and recipes are available that provide these nutrients. Thus, when a nutritionally complete diet is used, the only remaining concern is to ensure proper dosage of calories. Two well-known formulas, based on the resting energy requirement, can be used to calculate caloric needs: