ArticleThe South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings2024
Tube feeding in advanced dementia: Insights from South African speech-language therapists.
Article in The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.
- Healthcare professionals' experiences and thoughts on eating and drinking with acknowledged risks in older adults: a comparison of Japan and the UK.Age and ageing · 2026Article
- Current trends and identified gaps in dysphagia research in Africa: A scoping review.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSpeech-language therapists (SLTs) may recommend tube feeding even with minimal research evidence of its effectiveness, and an understanding of SLTs' perceived practices is warranted.
objectivesTo qualitatively describe a sample of South African SLTs' perceived practices regarding feeding tube placement in people with advanced dementia.
methodSemi-structured online interviews were conducted via Microsoft Teams. Eight South African SLTs with a particular interest in advanced dementia, in public and private settings, were recruited. Data were analysed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis.
resultsThree main themes were identified: (1) factors influencing SLTs' decisions for feeding tube placement in people with advanced dementia; (2) nature of clinical setting and SLTs' decision-making and (3) SLTs' considerations to improve management of people with advanced dementia. Existing local palliative care guidelines were not employed in decisions about tube feeding. Most participants did not recommend tube feeding during end-of-life care. Perceived burden of care influenced participants' decisions about tube feeding.
conclusionSpeech-language therapists in South Africa likely have an increased reliance on clinical experience rather than recent research and guidelines for decisions about feeding tube placement. Findings accentuate the importance of clinical supervision, mentoring and continuous professional development in the workplace. The findings are an urgent call to action to improve SLTs' overall practices and ethical service delivery for people with advanced dementia and their families.Contribution: Factors and needs regarding SLTs' decision-making about feeding tubes in people with advanced dementia are highlighted.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.