Nasogastric feeding is generally not very painful. However, discomfort may occur during insertion of the nasal feeding tube or if the tube is left in the digestive tract for a long time.
1. When inserting the nasal tube, it has to pass through the nasal cavity, nasopharynx, oropharynx, hypopharynx, esophagus, and finally to the stomach. During the process, as the nasal tube will stimulate the mucous membrane of the digestive tract, discomfort may occur, and it is necessary to cooperate with the operation, which is generally tolerable.
2. After insertion of nasal feeding, patients may feel slight discomfort due to the foreign body sensation caused by retaining the nasal feeding tube in the nasopharynx, pharynx, hypopharynx and other parts of the body.
3. If the nasal feeding tube is left in place for a long period of time, it may produce physical friction for a long period of time, which may cause congestion, edema, and erosion of the nasal mucosa or digestive tract mucosa, resulting in pain and other discomforts.
Patients should pay attention to the temperature of the food (should not be too cold or too hot) when using nasal feeding for food intake, and each time before feeding via nasal feeding needs to be pumped back to confirm that there is no food retention before infusion. If there is any discomfort, it should be treated promptly under the guidance of the doctor.