Patient name: _________________________________________________________________
Type of feeding tube: __________________________________________________________
Date inserted: _____________________________
Amount of water in balloon: ________________
Now that you have your feeding tube in, it’s important to care for it properly. After having the tube in, the area around the tube may be sore for a few days.
The following information gives you general help and advice. Before you go home you will be given instructions by the specialist nurses or dieticians on using the tube. At the end of this leaflet, there are some useful contact numbers you can use if you have problems.
If there is pain on feeding or external leakage of bowel contents or fresh bleeding, stop feed immediately and telephone your community dietitian for urgent advice. If you are unable to contact, you should attend your nearest Accident and Emergency department.
Daily stoma site care
Before touching your tube or any feed always wash your hands.
The stoma site (any opening on the body) must be kept clean and dry. If it is a new tube, it must be cleaned for the first seven days by a healthcare professional using aseptic technique (the procedure used to minimise infection).
After 7 days the site should then be cleaned daily with warm soapy water using a soft wipe and dried thoroughly with a soft dry wipe.
Mouth care after your tube insertion
When you are unable to eat, it is easy to forget about your mouth care. It is very important to keep your mouth clean and moist. You should clean your teeth regularly and use a mouth wash. If your mouth is particularly dry due to chemotherapy or radiotherapy your dietician will give you special instructions.
Changing the water in the balloon
Your feeding tube is held in place by a small balloon which is inflated with water. This water needs to be changed weekly.
The water in the balloon is completely removed and replaced with either sterile water in the hospital or with cooled
boiled water in the community. This may be done by District Nurses in the community or by yourself if you have been trained.
The amount of water in the balloon depends on the tube manufacturer and size, however there should never be more than 3mls in the balloon for a jejunostomy tube.
Please look in this leaflet for the amount of water that is in your balloon or contact the Community Dietitians if the details are unknown. If you notice someone has put more than 3mls into the balloon please flag this immediately to you dietitian.
Can I put medication down my feeding tube?
Your prescribed medications can go down your feeding tube. You must make sure that any medication that is put down the tube is in syrup or dissolvable form, please contact your pharmacist or GP if you have any medication that is in tablet form.
You must flush the tube with 50mls of sterile or cooled boiled water before and after any medications are put down the tube.
You must give each medication individually and flush with 10ml - 20mls of sterile or cooled boiled water between each medication.
Do not put any crushed tablets down the tube as they will block it.
Do not give any bulk-forming laxatives down the tube, e.g., “Fybogel” as they may form a thick jelly like mass once they are moistened.
What to do if your feeding tube becomes blocked
There are lots of reasons why your feeding tube may have become blocked, such as:
- Missing fluid flushes before and after feeding or after medications
- Putting crushed tablets down the tube
- Putting lots of medications down the tube at the same time
- The tube may have become kinked
If your feeding tube does become blocked, there are different things you can try, such as:
- Making sure that the tube is not kinked
- Looking for blockages in the tube
- Try to flush the tube with warm boiled water
- DO NOT use fruit juices, fizzy or carbonated drinks, this will make the blockage worse, as the acid in the drinks can react with feed/medication and cause damage to the tube
- DO NOT Use smaller volume syringes (unless trained by your nurse) as this can lead to ruptured tubes because of excess pressure
- DO NOT attempt to unblock it with any sharp objects
If you cannot unblock the tube, it must be changed. You must contact your Community Dietician or your district nurse as soon as possible.
What do I do if the tube falls out?
If your jejunostomy tube does fall out, you must contact your community dietician or district nurses as soon as possible.
It is important to get your district nurse or local Accident and Emergency Department to insert a temporary catheter into the site of the jejunostomy as soon as possible to keep the tract open, as they can heal over very quickly.
FAQS
Do I need a dressing to cover my feeding tube?
No dressing is needed from the day after your procedure if your feeding tube is new, as a dressing can increase the risk of infection. A dressing is only needed if there is any leakage from around the tube itself.
Can I go swimming?
Yes, you can go swimming 6 weeks after your procedure if your feeding tube is new.
Can I have a shower?
Yes, you can shower from the following day after your procedure if your feeding tube is new.
Contact numbers
Community Dietitians - 0161 206 2350
Abbott Nutrition Nurse Advisor - 0800 018 3799 (24hr helpline)
Interventional Radiology at Salford Royal - 0161 206 2206/5091
Hospital Nutrition nurse at Salford - 0161 206 1437
Interventional Radiology at Royal Oldham - 0161 778 5314/5414
Date of Review: July 2025
Date of Next Review: July 2027
Ref No: PI_DP_2092 (NCA)