History of the PEG - Ponsky

The British Association of Pediatric Surgeons sought to highlight the history of the Percutaneous Gastrostomy tube (PEG). So they asked Dr. Ponsky to teach us about the humble beginnings of the PEG – Well, they asked Dr. Jeff Ponsky. But his son, Dr. Todd Ponsky, couldn’t help but jump in too. Here, the father-son duo explain how the PEG was invented all those decades ago! A gastrostomy tube -- commonly abbreviated as "G-tube" -- is a tube that is placed into a patient's stomach. The word "gastrostomy" comes from two Latin root words for "stomach" (gastr) and "new opening" (stomy). This tube is used to give a child an alternate way to get their fluid, nutrition, and / or medications. It may also be used to vent a patient's stomach for air.