The Standard of Caring: Why Do We Still Use Feeding Tubes in Patients With Advanced Dementia?

Journal of the American Medical Directors Association

Volumn 9, Issue 5, 2008, Pages 364-367

  Gillick, Muriel R ^a   Volandes, Angelo E ^a,b  

^a HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL   (United States)

^b MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL   (United States)

Author keywords

Dementia; ethics; feeding tubes; standard of care

Indexed keywords

ARTICLE; ARTIFICIAL FEEDING; CLINICAL EFFECTIVENESS; CONSENSUS DEVELOPMENT; DEMENTIA; DISEASE SEVERITY; FAMILY ATTITUDE; FAMILY CENTERED CARE; MEDICAL ETHICS; PALLIATIVE THERAPY; PATIENT CARE; PHYSICIAN ATTITUDE; STANDARDIZATION; TUBE FEEDING;

EID: 44349141765     PISSN: 15258610     EISSN: 15389375     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jamda.2008.03.011     Document Type: Article

References (28)

1. Mitchell S.L., Kiely D.K., and Hamel M.B. Dying with advanced dementia in the nursing home. Arch Intern Med 164 (2004) 321-326
2. Chen J., Chan D., Kiely D.K., et al. Terminal trajectories of functional decline in the long-term care setting. J Gerontol 62A (2007) 531-536
3. British Psychological Society. Dementia: The NICE-SCIE Guideline on supporting people with dementia and their carers in health and social care. National Clinical Practice Guideline Number 42 (2007), BPS, London, England
4. American Geriatrics Society Clinical Recommendation. Feeding tube placement in elderly patients with advanced dementia. AGS, 2005. www.americangeriatrics.org/products/positionpapers/feeding_tube_placement.pdf Accessed December 1, 2007.
5. Mitchell S.L., Kiely D.K., and Lipsitz L.A. The risk factors and impact on survival of feeding tubes in nursing home residents with severely advanced dementia. Arch Intern Med 157 (1997) 327-332
6. Finucane T.E., Christmas C., and Travis K. Tube feeding in patients with advanced dementia: a review of the evidence. JAMA 282 (1999) 1365-1370
7. Gillick M.R. Rethinking the role of tube feeding in patients with advanced dementia. N Engl J Med 342 (2000) 206-210
8. Mitchell S.L. Clinical crossroads: A 93-year-old man with advanced dementia and eating problems. JAMA 298 (2007) 2527-2536
9. Teno J.M., Mor V., DeSilva D., et al. Use of feeding tubes in nursing home residents with severe cognitive impairment. JAMA 287 (2002) 3211-3212
10. Mitchell S.L., Teno J.M., Roy J., et al. A national study of the clinical and organizational determinants of tube-feeding among nursing home residents with advanced cognitive impairment. JAMA 290 (2003) 73-80
11. Braun K.K., Rabeneck L., McCullough L., et al. Decreasing use of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube feeding for veterans with dementia: Racial differences remain. J Am Geriatr Soc 53 (2005) 242-248
12. Mitchell S., Kiely D., and Gillick M. Nursing home characteristics associated with tube feeding in advanced cognitive impairment. J Am Geriatr Soc 51 (2003) 75-79
13. Sieger C.E., Arnold J.F., and Ahronheim J.C. Refusing artificial nutrition and hydration: Does statutory law send the wrong message?. J Amer Geriatr Soc 50 (2002) 544-550
14. Finucane T., Christmas C., and Leff B. Tube feeding in dementia: How incentives undermine healthcare quality and patient safety. J Amer Med Dir Assoc 8 (2007) 205-208
15. Casarett D., Kapo J., and Caplan A. Appropriate use of artificial nutrition and hydration- fundamental principles and recommendations. N Engl J Med 353 (2005) 2607-2612
16. Mitchell S.L., Lawson F.M., and Berkowitz R.A. A cross national survey of decisions for long-term tube-feeding in older persons. J Am Geriatr Soc 48 (2000) 791-797
17. Steinhauser K., Christakis N., Clipp E.C., et al. Factors considered important at the end of life by patients, family, physicians, and other care providers. JAMA 284 (2000) 2476-2482
18. Chochinov H.M. Dignity conserving care: A new model for palliative care. JAMA 287 (2002) 2253-2260
19. Teno J., Clarridge B., Casey V., et al. Family perspectives on end-of-life care at the last place of care. JAMA 291 (2004) 88-93
20. Post S. The humane goal: Enhancing the well-being of persons with dementia. In: Post S. (Ed). The Moral Challenge of Alzheimer Disease (2000), Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 78-95
21. Warden V., Hurley A.C., and Volicer L. Development of a psychometric evaluation of the pain assessment in advanced dementia (PAINAD) scale. J Amer Med Dir Assoc 4 (2003) 9-15
22. Aminoff B.Z., Purits E., Noy S., and Adunsky A. Measuring the suffering of end-stage dementia: Reliability of the Mini-Suffering State Examination. Arch Gerontol Soc 38 (2004) 123-130
23. Pasman H., OnWuteaka-Philipsen B., Kriegsman D., et al. Discomfort in nursing home patients with severe dementia in whom artificial nutrition and hydratin is forgone. Arch Intern Med 165 (2005) 1729-1735
24. Mcann R., Hall W., and Groth-Juncker A. Comfort care in terminally ill patients: The appropriate use of nutrition and hydration. JAMA 272 (1994) 1263-1266
25. Slomka J. What do apple pie and motherhood have to do with feeding tubes and caring for the patient?. Arch Intern Med 155 (1995) 1258-1263
26. Schneiderman L., Jecker N., and Jonsen A. Medical futility: Its meaning and ethical implications. Ann Intern Med 112 (1990) 949-954
27. Tomlinson T., and Brody H. Futility and the ethics of resuscitation. JAMA 264 (1990) 1276-1280
28. Truog R., Brett A., and Frader J. The problem with futility. N Engl J Med 326 (1992) 1560-1564