Nasogastric Tube in Spanish

What is a nasogastric tube used for?

The NCI dictionary says a nasogastric tube can be used to give drugs, liquids, and liquid food, or used to remove substances from the stomach. MedlinePlus describes the feeding use: the tube carries food and medicine to the stomach through the nose, and it can be used for all feedings or for giving a person extra calories.

Words that come with the tube

The MedlinePlus home-care page for the nasogastric feeding tube has a section on flushing the tube, which it says helps release any formula stuck to the inside of the tube, and a section on taking care of the skin around the tube. Among the alternative names it lists for the article are NG tube and gavage tube. Its list of reasons to contact a provider includes the tube falling out and a tube that keeps getting clogged.

What it means

A nasogastric tube is a tube that is inserted through the nose, down the throat and esophagus, and into the stomach, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) dictionary. It can be used to give drugs, liquids, and liquid food, or to remove substances from the stomach; giving food through a nasogastric tube is a type of enteral nutrition. NCI adds that it is also called a gastric feeding tube and an NG tube. MedlinePlus describes a nasogastric tube (NG tube) as a special tube that carries food and medicine to the stomach through the nose, and says it can be used for all feedings or for giving a person extra calories. In Spanish the term is sonda nasogástrica.

Spanish term: Sonda nasogástrica
Gender and article: feminine: la sonda nasogástrica
Pronunciation: SOHN-dah nah-soh-GAHS-tree-kah

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
sonda NG	General	Short form the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary gives as another name; MedlinePlus en español writes it in parentheses after the full term.
tubo nasogástrico	General	Another name given at the end of the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary entry for sonda nasogástrica.
sonda de alimentación gástrica	General	Another name given at the end of the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary entry for sonda nasogástrica.

Sonda nasogástrica is the term in both MedlinePlus en español and the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary, and it is feminine: la sonda nasogástrica. The Spanish dictionary gives sonda a medical sense: an instrument introduced into a body to explore one of its parts or to extract or introduce substances. The NCI Spanish dictionary says the device is also called sonda de alimentación gástrica, sonda NG and tubo nasogástrico, and MedlinePlus en español writes Sonda NG in parentheses after the full name.

MedlinePlus en español titles its home-care page Sonda de alimentación nasogástrica. On that page, flushing the tube is lavado de la sonda, the nostril is la fosa nasal, and the feeding syringe is la jeringa de alimentación. The NCI Spanish dictionary calls feeding through a nasogastric tube a type of nutrición enteral, and it uses la nariz, la garganta, el esófago and el estómago for the path the tube follows.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Clinician	We are going to place a nasogastric tube through your nose and into your stomach.	Vamos a colocarle una sonda nasogástrica por la nariz hasta el estómago.
Patient	Will it hurt when the tube goes in?	¿Me va a doler cuando entre la sonda?
Patient	Why does my father need a tube in his nose?	¿Por qué mi padre necesita una sonda en la nariz?
Clinician	The tube carries liquid food and medicine to his stomach.	La sonda lleva alimentos líquidos y medicamentos a su estómago.
Patient	How long will the NG tube stay in?	¿Cuánto tiempo va a tener puesta la sonda NG?
Clinician	The nursing staff will show you how to flush the tube after each feeding.	El personal de enfermería le enseñará cómo lavar la sonda después de cada alimentación.
Patient	The skin around my nostril is red and irritated.	Tengo la piel alrededor de la fosa nasal roja e irritada.
Patient	The tube came out during the night. Whom should I call?	La sonda se salió durante la noche. ¿A quién debo llamar?

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Nasogastric Tube
Spanish (Español)	Sonda nasogástrica
Chinese (中文)	鼻胃管
Korean (한국어)	비위관
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Ống thông mũi dạ dày
Filipino (Tagalog)	Nasogastric tube
Portuguese (Português)	Sonda nasogástrica
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	สายให้อาหารทางจมูก
Japanese (日本語)	鼻腔胃管

Where you'll see it

chartmedical record

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: General care: tests, procedures and medicines

All terms in this area: General care: tests, procedures and medicines — Atención general: pruebas, procedimientos y medicamentos

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.