Question

The length of feeding tube to be inserted for transpyloric feeding is measured from the tip of the

• A. Nose to Umbilicus
• B. Ear Lobe to Umbilicus
• C. Nose to Knee Joint
• D. Ear Lobe to Knee Joint

Hint:

Transpyloric tubes use the longer NEMU rule: nose to ear to mid-umbilicus.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Recall how feeding tube length is measured in infants.
Two landmarks are commonly used together to size a feeding tube: the tip of the nose, the ear lobe, and either the xiphoid process (for gastric placement) or a point past the stomach (for tubes meant to sit beyond the pylorus).

Step 2: Understand the difference between gastric and transpyloric placement.
A gastric tube only needs to reach the stomach, so it is measured nose to ear to xiphoid, often called the NEX method. A transpyloric tube has to travel further, past the stomach and pylorus into the duodenum or jejunum, so a longer measurement is needed.

Step 3: Identify the correct landmark for transpyloric length.
For transpyloric feeding, the extra length is estimated using the umbilicus as the distal landmark, giving the nose to ear to mid-umbilicus measurement, sometimes called NEMU. This adds enough length for the tube tip to sit past the pylorus.

Step 4: Rule out the other options.
Ear lobe to umbilicus alone leaves out the nose, which is part of the standard landmark set, so it undercounts the true path length. Using the knee joint as a landmark is not part of any standard feeding tube sizing method for infants, so options (C) and (D) do not fit.

Final Answer:
The transpyloric tube length is measured from the nose to the umbilicus (via the ear). \[ \boxed{\text{Nose to Umbilicus}} \]