​Symptoms and Signs – Differential Diagnosis of Diarrhea in Tube-Fed Patient

​Symptoms and Signs – Differential Diagnosis of Diarrhea in  Tube-Fed Patient
(causal association with diarrhea not documented)
• Antibiotic-induced sterile gut
• Bacterial contamination of enteral products and delivery systems
• Elixir medications containing sorbitol
• Formula hyperosmolality (proven not to be the cause of diarrhea)
• High fat content of formula (in the presence of fat malabsorption syndrome)
• Inadequate fiber to form stool bulk
• Lactose (absent from nearly all enteral feeding formulas)
• Magnesium-containing antacids
• Pseudomembranous colitis
• Rapid advancement in rate (after the GI tract is unused for  prolonged periods)