Recommendations of the ESGE Workshop on the Ethics of Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) Placement for Nutritional Support

Introduction

The panel met for discussion of the issues during the course of the First European Symposium on Ethics in Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, June 27 - 30 2002, in Kos, Greece. The agreed conclusions were further debated and commented upon during the Plenary Session of the symposium. The points described below are to be regarded as preliminary. They should not be taken as guidelines, nor as firm recommendations concerning endoscopic practice. The ethical principles governing percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) placement need to be further refined and adapted to codes of practice obtaining in individual countries. In the future, note will also have to be taken of any European Union (EU) directives that might affect EU member countries.

The panel felt that the practice and ethics of PEG placement was fundamentally affected by a number of general issues. Clinical issues are of obvious and essential importance, but PEG placement is also influenced by other factors that include ethical, socioeconomic, cultural, and legal considerations.

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