stumped by change in g-tube

Specialties Gastroenterology

Published

I'm not a gastroenterology nurse, so I'm hoping the experts can help me! Home care patient's g-tube was just replaced after about a year. New tube is mic balloon tip type. We are struggling to get tip of tubing from enteral nutrition bag in & out of new tube. Is there a trick to this? Today the white ribbed cylinder actually came out of the g-tube, stuck to the purple tip of the bag tubing. I was able to pry them apart & reinsert the white piece, but it's a struggle ever time, and I'm sure this wasn't supposed to happen! Where are we going wrong???

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Specializes in Med-surg.

Yeah, I've never seen that happen, and it shouldn't have. As far as I know, there's only one type of tubing that you can use with these tubes, and they're MicKey brand. If you know you're using that, make sure you're lining up the notch on the tubing with the notch on the device when you insert it, then lock it in the direction of the arrow. Make sure you're going in the opposite direction when you take it off.

I'm not a gastroenterology nurse, so I'm hoping the experts can help me! Home care patient's g-tube was just replaced after about a year. New tube is mic balloon tip type. We are struggling to get tip of tubing from enteral nutrition bag in & out of new tube. Is there a trick to this? Today the white ribbed cylinder actually came out of the g-tube, stuck to the purple tip of the bag tubing. I was able to pry them apart & reinsert the white piece, but it's a struggle ever time, and I'm sure this wasn't supposed to happen! Where are we going wrong???
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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

If it is a purple tipped GT extension tubing, it may be the AMT brand (they are supposedly compatible with Mic-key buttons) However, in their all knowing intelligence they made the purple tip "stickier" so the enteral bag tubing doesn't "fall out" so easily, however it's so sticky I've seen GT buttons dislodged, the purple female end on the extension tubing become snapped off, the tip of a Farrell bag snap off, and the connector from the enteral feed bag become snapped off all while gently trying to disconnect the system.

AMT Mini ONE® Feeding Sets | G-Tube Feeding Sets "Purple Y-port made with special elastomer to help secure stepped connector with a “sticky” friction fit"

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Many thanks to both of you for your responses -- very helpful!

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Specializes in Peds, developmental disability.

I went to the AMT site. I can appreciate the need, especially at the Y-port section, for a tighter seal. My one pedi pt.'s port pops open when he bears down, or, when my other little guy plays with his tubing. Milk silently flows everywhere.

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