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Review
. 2025 Mar 7;17(6):931.
doi: 10.3390/nu17060931.

A Narrative Review of Home Enteral Nutrition in Australia with a Focus on Blended Tube Feeding

Lina Breik  1 , Lisa A Barker  1 , Judy Bauer  1 , Zoe E Davidson  1
Affiliations
Review

A Narrative Review of Home Enteral Nutrition in Australia with a Focus on Blended Tube Feeding

Lina Breik et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Enteral nutrition, commonly known as tube feeding, is a life-sustaining intervention for individuals who cannot meet their nutritional needs orally due to medical conditions affecting swallowing, digestion, or nutrient absorption. Since its introduction in the 1970s, home enteral nutrition (HEN) has enabled the safe delivery of complete or supplemental nutrition in community settings, enhancing both quality of life and healthcare outcomes. The HEN landscape in Australia is rapidly evolving, driven in part by the renewed interest in blended tube feeding (BTF). This narrative review explores the current state of HEN care and BTF support in Australia, focusing on prevalence, funding models, provider and client perspectives, clinical guidelines, and advocacy efforts.

Keywords: blended tube feeding; home enteral nutrition; home tube feeding; narrative review; nutritional support.

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Conflict of interest statement

L. Breik has received honorariums from Nutricia, Cardinal Health, Abbott, Fresenius Kabi, and Avanos for work unrelated to this study. J. Bauer has received honorariums from Nutricia for work unrelated to this study. Remaining authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A timeline of the evolution of enteral nutrition [2,3,4,5,6,7,8].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Barriers to effective home enteral nutrition (HEN) care and blended tube-feeding (BTF) support in Australia.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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