Beyond Bandages: 7 Critical Ways Enteral Nourishment Adds A Valuable Dimension To Wound Care In Long-Term Care

Wound care is consequential & made even more challenging when patients have difficulty swallowing, are on ventilators or experience severe appetite loss.

YARDLEY, PA, UNITED STATES, August 27, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — It is estimated that nearly 100% of seniors receiving care in a long-term care facility will suffer from at least one wound during their stay. Typical wounds include pressure wounds, diabetic foot ulcers, venous ulcers, skin tears, post-operative wounds and others. In long-term care, wound care is an important and pervasive activity, made even more challenging when patients have difficulty swallowing, are on ventilators or experience severe appetite loss.

“When the words “wound care” are mentioned, bandages and dressings are often the first things that come to mind. However, it is also valuable not to overlook the importance nourishment plays in the wound healing process. Bandages and dressings work from the outside, while nourishment enhances healing from the inside,” said David Navazio, Chief Executive Officer of Gentell, the largest vertically integrated wound care manufacturer in the world, and an outspoken advocate for the rights of the elderly and disabled.

Navazio points out that as people age, they can become malnourished often due to difficulties ingesting key nutrients that also aid wound healing. He suggests that one of the safer and more effective ways for providing compromised patients with the nourishment they need is to engage them in enteral or tube feeding.

“According to many sources, including sciencedirect.com, not only does enteral feeding help nourish the patient, it can also promote faster wound healing by providing the nutrients and calories patients need to strengthen their metabolic and immune systems,” said Navazio. He has identified seven ways an enteral program can add a valuable dimension to wound care, one that can speed wound healing and help prevent wounds from becoming chronic. They include:

1) Enteral feeding provides direct dissemination of nutrients.
Compared to other options, an enteral feeding protocol delivers nutrients directly to the digestive system, according to MDSearchlight.com, more naturally preserving the health and structure of the intestine while ensuring that vitamins and minerals get to the blood stream, and therefore to the wound, faster.

2) Nourishment helps reduce inflammation.
When a wound is in an inflamed state, providing it with nutrients of calcium, vitamins K, A, and E, zinc, and proteins are essential, according to woundcareanswers.com, in reducing and ending the inflammation and in enhancing the natural cleaning of the wound.

3) Provides vitamins & minerals to support healing.
In addition, as wounds start to heal, amino acids, B vitamins, lipids, zinc and iron play key roles in enhancing the healing process. For example, vitamins A and C promote the proliferation of fibroblasts and other regenerative cells, while also helping increase the number of white blood cells in the wound bed, to support and speed healing.

4) Stimulates remodeling of the wound area.
Enteral nutrition enhances the synthesis of collagen, hyaluronic acid and elastin, according to westcoastwound.com, which repairs damaged skin tissue and promotes remodeling from within.

5) Facilitates overall wound healing.
Specific enteral treatments have patented Hydroxyproline and Hydroxyproline-Glycine which are highly resistant to enzymatic degradation leading to faster wound healing, according to the National Library of Medicine.

6) Increases immunity to infection.
Infections create a negative wound recovery environment. Enteral nourishment promotes immunity from within, which can significantly help reduce and prevent infection, as covered in the American Journal of Surgery (https://www.americanjournalofsurgery.com/article/S0002-9610(03)00291-5/fulltext).

7) Increases the body’s resiliency.
Also covered in the American Journal of surgery, fats and other nutrients provide energy to give the patient more strength to fight the negative influences on wounds, while promoting faster healing.

As patients get older, wound care in long-term care facilities and home care, can become even more challenging. Said Navazio, “The most effective wound care involves both external and internal therapies. It is important to recognize how valuable a team effort, among physicians, nurses and dieticians can play in improving overall wound care results and comfort for patients.”
—–
ABOUT GENTELL:
Gentell is the largest vertically integrated wound care manufacturer, with manufacturing plants in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Paraguay, China and New Zealand, as well as facilities around the world. The company manufactures and supplies efficient, affordable patient-specific wound care products to nursing homes, home care, hospices and other health care settings. Gentell is also a pioneer in developing innovative and technologically advanced wound care database and logistics systems for its customers to make wound care more effective and efficient in improving people’s lives.

Gentell
1000 Floral Vale Blvd., Suite 400
Yardley, PA 19067 USA
Toll Free: 1-800-840-9041
Phone: 215-788-2700 Fax: 215-788-2715

Website: Gentell.com
LinkedIn: linked.com/in/davidnavazio linkedin.com/company/gentell
Twitter: x.com/david_navazio @gentell2701
Facebook: facebook.com/DNavazio

# # #

Leo Levinson
GroupLevinson Public Relations
+1 215-545-4600
leo@grouplevinson.com
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
Facebook
X

Media gallery