Incidence and Risk Factors of Gastric Retention Associated With Enteral Nutrition: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Tiantian Li, Nan Qu, Lifeng Zhang, Xingyu Liu, Liping Cui, Pei GaoABSTRACT
Background
Gastric retention is a common complication in enteral nutrition, which may lead to interruption of nutrition, malnutrition, electrolyte imbalance and other problems. Up‐to‐date knowledge of its incidence and influencing factors is crucial for optimal management strategies of enteral nutrition.
Aim
This study aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta‐analysis to quantify the incidence of retention of gastric contents in patients receiving enteral feeding and to identify significant influencing factors.
Design
This study is a systematic review and meta‐analysis.
Data Sources and Review Methods
Using established methods and searching from database inception to 18 May 2025, we searched CNKI, Wanfang Data, CBM, VIP, PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE and The Cochrane Library. RevMan 5.4 software was used to perform the meta‐analysis.
Results
A meta‐analysis of 14 studies involving 2642 patients receiving enteral nutrition reported a 32.0% incidence of gastric retention. Nineteen factors associated with gastric retention were identified. Notably, descriptive analyses indicated that early initiation of enteral nutrition (OR = 0.37) and concomitant use of probiotics (OR = 0.22) were protective against the development of gastric retention.
Conclusion
Findings support clinicians and nurses in more accurately identifying high‐risk patients and formulating targeted intervention strategies based on the identified risk factors.