Summary
A procedure for percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy is described. Under direct endoscopic
control, the surgeon introduces, percutaneously, into the inflated stomach a 9 French
Foley catheter through a special needle, which may then be opened for removal. After
positioning, the terminal balloon of the Foley is inflated with 7-8 ml of air and
the catheter is placed under slight traction to appose the gastric and abdominal walls.
Such a method has been used in 5 patients with cancer of the cardia requiring enteral
feeding prior to surgery. No complications due to the positioning of the gastrostomy
catheter have been observed. We believe that this simple, reliable and inexpensive
method constitutes an improvement on the previously described endoscopic percutaneous
gastrostomy techniques.
Key words:
Gastrostomy - Endoscopy - Enteral feeding