Blended feeding in gastrostomy-fed children-A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Blended feeding has become increasingly prevalent in recent years with its practice gaining some momentum. With anecdotal reports of benefits and little evidence of harm in the literature regarding blended feeding, this scoping review was deemed important. The aim of this scoping review was to summarise the published evidence about blended feeding in gastrostomy-fed children. METHOD: The scoping review methodology used included searches in specific online databases: PUBMED, PsychINFO, CINAHL, SCOPUS, AMED and EMBASE for articles that addressed issues pertaining to blended feeds in gastrostomy-fed children. Grey literature was also considered. Inclusion criteria included papers that pertained to information and research on blended feeding in gastrostomy-fed children. Studies published in English over the past 11 years (2011-2022) were included. This resulted in 59 papers being included in this scoping review. RESULTS: Thematic analysis of the literature identified eight overall themes. It was clear that parents found blended feeding promoted the normalising of feeding, their own involvement in decision-making around foods and promotion of a socially inclusive mealtime. The need for dietician and health professional input and support is key, whereas a lack of guidelines acts as a barrier to blended feeding. Furthermore, risks associated with blended feeding are identified but also the benefits to the physical well-being of the child are considered. CONCLUSION: The review was comprehensive in that it identified a broad range of literature, exploring the extent, range and nature of research activity related to the use of blended feeds. The lack of original research is a concern. However, it is expected this review will provide direction for researchers, and in particular inform policy and practitioners working in the field where blended feeds may be an option for gastrostomy-fed children.

Parents and health professionals' experiences and perceptions of blended feeding in tube-fed children: a qualitative systematic review protocol.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this review is to identify and synthesize the best available evidence on parents' and health professionals' experiences and perceptions of blended feeding in tube-fed children in order to promote effective decision-making on its use. INTRODUCTION: Blended feeding is not a new concept, despite the fact that commercial formulas have displaced its use in recent years. As feeding is viewed as an intimate experience between a parent and child, the choice of individualized blended feeds is something to be considered; however, professionals find there is a lack of evidence and discussion to support the use of blended feeding in practice. Therefore, the findings of this review may be beneficial, especially for professionals, and inform or promote more effective decision-making on the use of blended feeding. INCLUSION CRITERIA: This review will consider studies that investigate parents and/or health professionals' experiences and perceptions of total or partial blended feeding in tube-fed children. Studies published in English that focus on qualitative data will be considered. There will be no restrictions on year or publication. METHODS: The key information sources to be searched are: CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Embase, Web of Science, WHO Library Database (GIM), and Google Scholar, along with several sources of gray literature. Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts against the inclusion criteria, and will retrieve full text studies, assess methodological quality, and extract data. Findings will be pooled using meta aggregation, and a ConQual Summary of Findings will be presented. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO (CRD42020160357).