Examining the safety of nasogastric tube placement after endoscopic sinus surgery.

Several cases of intracranial injury during the placement of nasogastric tubes have been reported, usually in the setting of anterior skull base fractures. The fovea ethmoidalis and sphenoid sinus are often exposed after endoscopic sinus surgery, so that these structures are potentially placed in the line of contact during nasogastric tube placement. In order to evaluate the ability of the fovea ethmoidalis and roof of the sphenoid sinus to withstand penetration from possible contact during nasogastric tube placement, 12 fresh cadaver heads were studied. After complete endoscopic ethmoidectomy and wide sphenoidotomy, standard 18F and 16F nasogastric tubes were inserted to produce deliberate direct contact with both the fovea ethmoidalis and the sphenoid sinus roof. No penetrations of the fovea occurred in 20 specimen sides with the 18F tube; penetration did occur with the 16F tube in 1 of 13 sides (7.7%). With respect to the sphenoid sinus, no intracranial penetrations occurred in 16 and 11 sides for the 18F and 16F tubes, respectively. The sphenoid sinus was easily entered even in the presence of an intact middle turbinate. These data suggest that although intracranial penetration during nasogastric intubation after endoscopic sinus surgery is an unlikely event, there is a non-negligible risk of such injury. Nasogastric intubation should be performed with caution in patients with a history of sinus surgery.