Tube Feedings
Some babies with congenital heart disease may not take in adequate amounts of calories with breast-feeding or bottle-feeding alone. These children may require additional feeding using a nasogastric (NG) tube. This NG tube is placed in the baby’s nose and passes to the stomach. Formula or breast milk is delivered through the tube. This makes the feedings less “work” and results in your baby gaining more weight. Other methods of tube feeding include gastrostomy tube (GT) or jejeunostomy tube (JT). These methods involve placing the tube surgically into the stomach (GT) or intestine (JT). You and your healthcare team will determine the best method and feeding schedule for your baby.