Hi all,

I don't know the formula that Mom is getting--she's entirely dependent on a peg tube--but the caregivers at her LTAC here at Emory can't get to a happy medium between constipation and diarhhea. I would HAPPILY take advice/counsel on what worked for y'all. Mom is gravity fed about 60cc/hour, given a stool softener whenever she becomes constipated. That seems to work too well--then she has huge bouts of diarhhea. She's not upwardly mobile but 4x a week for about an hour a day.

Thanks@ Trish

What is LTAC?

To help cure the diarrhea, slow down the rate to 20 for a week. I know its soooo slow! Add more water to the formula. I would say for every 3 cans of formula, add 2 cans of water. The pump will run almost non-stop with it being so slow and so much extra water. It is necessary to get her digestive system regulated so she can tolerate the formula. Keep it like this for at least 3 days then bump it up to 30 for a few days then 40. Every increase in speed, make sure she is ok with it for at least 3 days before you move it up further. If she doesnt tolerate it, you may have to go back down for a couple days before you move it higher again. Give her immodium to help with diarrhea. Make sure you discuss this with her doctor. Pain meds will cause constipation. Be cautious with the stool softeners too as this could be one of the culprits of her diarrhea.

Good luck!!!

This is just the info I was looking for Christina. 20 rate...does that equate to fewer calories?

Thanks! Trish

I would say no just a longer time to run a feed, so if they would normally put her on a feed and run it at 40 for and hour and a half, a slower rate means she would take 3 hours for the feed.

If they are giving her say 5 cans a day - that times 3 hours would mean she's hooked up for 15 hours instead of 7.5.

Math early on Friday morning... brain fried. Good luck.

Ugh. Yeah, I didn't have a solid bowel movement the entire 4 months I was using my PEG tube. Now post treatment, I have the opposite problem. I am on permanent fiber treatment.

Thanks for the advice everyone! Diarhhea is under control. We are about to move her from continuous feed to bolusing, so we'll see what new problems that will bring! I'm off to search for advice on this now!

It was months before I learned that diarrhea wasn't the norm. My thinking was liquid in = liquid out. What I did was to add a can of formula with fiber and increased my water. I use one to one formula to water. I am on gravity feed - 2 cans 0f 2Cal for breakfast and lunch and 1 x 2Cal plus 1 Jevity with Fiber for evening. I have used various brands over the years but basically the same mix. If I am trying to gain weight then I will add a can of the Jevity (250 cal each) to the first 2 meals and 1 can of water. I then drink extra water during the day. You might want to get a prescription for probiotics or ad a probiotic yogurt to the feeds or a separate bolus feed.