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Previous Volume 336:41-48 January 2, 1997 Number 1 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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The indications for providing nutrients by the enteral or intravenous route (nutritional support) are not well defined, and the efficacy of nutritional support in many circumstances is unproved. Nonetheless, nutritional support is widely used for several reasons: malnutrition is common in hospitalized patients,^1,2 there is an association between malnutrition and increased morbidity^3,4 and mortality,⁵ it seems intuitively likely that well-nourished patients will respond most favorably to treatment, nutritional support can be administered safely to most patients, and clinical trials indicate that it is beneficial in selected patients.^6,7,8,9,10

Virtually all patients can be fed intravenously or enterally, because of the development . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Identification of Malnourished Patients

Indications for Nutritional Support

Major Elective Surgery

Major Trauma

Bone Marrow Transplantation

Unproved Benefits of Nutritional Support

Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy for Cancer

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Gastrointestinal Tract Dysfunction

Liver Failure

Renal Failure

Optimal Route of Delivery and Composition of Nutritional Formulas

Benefits and Costs of Nutritional Support

Future Directions and Conclusions

Source Information

From the Division of Surgical Oncology and the Nutrition Support Service, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston.

Address reprint requests to Dr. Souba at Massachusetts General Hospital, Cox Bldg., Rm. 626, 100 Blossom St., Boston, MA 02114.

References

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