Gastrostomy is performed because a patient temporarily or permanently needs to be fed directly through a tube in the stomach. Reasons for feeding by gastrostomy include birth defects of the mouth, esophagus, or stomach, and problems sucking or swallowing. Gastrostomy is also performed to provide drainage for the stomach when it is necessary to bypass a long-standing obstruction of the stomach outlet into the small intestine. Obstructions may be caused by peptic ulcer scarring or a tumor.
Definition of vitalism. 1  1 : a doctrine that the functions of a living organism are due to a vital principle distinct from physicochemical forces. 2  2 : a doctrine that the processes of life are not explicable by the laws of physics and chemistry alone and that life is in some part self-determining.
For the 2014 book, see Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less. Essentialism is the view that, for any specific entity (such as an animal, a group of people, a physical object, a concept), there is a set of attributes which are necessary to its identity and function.In Western thought the concept is found in the work of Plato and Aristotle.ssentialism has emerged as an important concept in psychology, particularly developmental psychology. Gelman and Kremer (1991) studied the extent to which children from 4â7 years old demonstrate essentialism.