POSTOPERATIVE TUBE FEEDING FOR GASTRIC CANCER

In tube feeding it has been said that clinical symptoms and the composition of the enteral bacterial flora are affected by the kind of nutrient given. In the present study, Bifidobacterium was administered along with tube feeding to patients possibly showing delayed return to the normal condition of the enteral bacterial flora among cases receiving enteral nutrition after surgery for gastric cancer, and these cases were compared with a control group who were not administered Bifidobacterium. The bacterial flora immediately after surgery showed marked decreases in anaerobic Bifidobacterium, Bacteroidaceae and Eubacterium in both groups due to the influence of antibiotics, and acrobes were found in almost all part of intestina canal. The bacterial flora during and after tube feeding revealed a significant increase in Bifidobacterium in the group administered the bacterium, but there was no such increase in the control group. It was apparent that the frequency and degree of occurrence of diarrhea were more reduced to a greater degree in the administered group than in the control group. This was thought to be due to the increase in Bifidobacterium. There were hardly any differences in biochemical measurecments between the two groups, suggesting that Bifidobacterium had no effect on these parameters.