Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube feeding may improve outcome of late rehabilitation following stroke.

Abstract We describe three stroke patients with prolonged swallowing difficulty whose rehabilitation had been unsuccessful due to recurrent aspiration pneumonia and/or nasogastric tube dislodgement. Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube feeding, initiated 4-6 months following the onset of stroke, was associated with nutritional improvement, marked functional recovery and eventual discharge from hospital. This form of nutritional support may find an important role in the rehabilitation of stroke patients with persisting difficulty with swallowing.