2022 Volume 85 Issue 1 Pages 21-27
We inserted nasogastric tubes (NGTs) into 47.4% of the 586 patients who underwent oral surgery under general anesthesia (GA) at our hospital in 2020. This study outlines our recommended checklist for recording details related to the NGTs and our procedures for verifying if they were malpositioned. The checklist is followed to assure safety of the patient. This procedure was followed in 53.6% of our cases where an NGT was used. Recording of this information on the NTGs was more complete than that in the anesthetic record. Analyzing our checklists, we found that 13% of the cases required more than one attempt to insert the NGT, probably due to malpositioning of the tube. We attempted to determine if the NGT had been malpositioned by a combination of drainage or auscultation, and by another method using a CO2 monitor and pH tester. The pH measurement, which was used in 12.5% of the cases, was adequate in most instances. We found that the checklist was useful in managing the NTGs from the standpoint of patient safety. We recommend use of this checklist for all cases. Shika Igaku (J Osaka Odontol Soc) 2022; Mar; 85(1): 21-27.
