Heat Application on Gastrointestinal System Functions

January 25, 2024 updated by: Özlem Ceyhan, TC Erciyes University

The Effect of Heat Application on Gastrointestinal System Functions in Patients Receiving Continuous Enteral Nutrition

Complications related to the gastrointestinal system can occur in patients receiving enteral nutrition. These complications may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, decreased bowel sounds, abdominal distension, increased gastric residual volume, and abdominal pain. To prevent and treat food intolerance, as well as to increase gastric emptying, the use of prokinetic agents is often preferred. However, these drugs have various side effects, such as abdominal cramps, allergies, bronchospasm, cardiac issues, and pancreatic disorders. One non-pharmacological method that can be applied to increase bowel motility and reduce abdominal distension and constipation is heat application. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of heat application to the abdominal and lumbar regions, using a hot water bag, on gastrointestinal system functions in patients receiving continuous enteral nutrition.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

60

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Intensive care unit patients
  • Individuals aged 18 and above
  • Patients receiving enteral nutrition via nasogastric tube
  • Patients on the first day of enteral nutrition
  • Those receiving standard enteral nutrition solution
  • Patients without wounds in the abdominal region
  • Individuals who have not undergone abdominal surgery in the last 6 months
  • Patients not undergoing radiation/chemotherapy
  • Those with a high-output fistula without ileus problems
  • Patients without diarrhea and constipation
  • Patients with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GKS) > 3
  • Those with an APACHE II score > 16
  • Patients not taking prokinetic agents
  • Patients not taking laxative medications
  • Patients without any contraindications for the application of heat, such as neuropathy (to be determined in consultation with the primary doctor).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients in whom enteral nutrition is discontinued during the study
  • Patients transitioning to a product other than the standard one in enteral nutrition
  • Patients who temporarily pause enteral nutrition
  • Patients who have started prokinetic agents
  • The study will be terminated in patients who have started taking laxative medications.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Heat Application
Heat will be applied to the abdominal/lumbar area for 15 minutes.
The researcher will conduct daily measurements of gastric residual volume (GRV) and abdominal circumference, listen to bowel sounds, and assess distension from the first day of enteral nutrition initiation. Additionally, they will record the frequency of vomiting/defecation. Subsequently, a 15-minute hot application will be applied to the abdominal/lumbar region.
No Intervention: Control Group
No intervention will be made.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Gastric residual volume
Time Frame: 7 days
GRV measurement will be made 30 minutes after stopping feeding. It will be evaluated before and after application.
7 days
Abdominal Distension
Time Frame: 7 days
Abdominal distension will be assessed 30 minutes after stopping feeding. The palpation method will be used. Additionally, abdominal circumference will be measured with a tape measure. Evaluation will be made before and after the intervention.
7 days
Bowel sounds
Time Frame: 7 days
Bowel sounds should be evaluated 30 minutes after stopping feeding. Bowel sounds are listened to with a stethoscope for one minute. It will be evaluated before and after the intervention.
7 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Defecation Patterns
Time Frame: 7 days
measure defecation frequency and nature
7 days
Vomiting
Time Frame: 7 days
The number of vomitings during the day is recorded
7 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

February 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 28, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 25, 2024

First Posted (Estimated)

January 26, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

January 26, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 25, 2024

Last Verified

January 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • HeatAppGastro

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.