Decision tree for nutritional care

Undernutrition is a frequent complication of acute and chronic diseases, and is correlated with disease prognosis and patients' quality of life. Undernutrition has a major impact on health care costs. Screening of undernutrition and nutritional care are recommended in current clinical practice and the identification of undernutrition-related costs is of prime importance. The management of nutritional care depends on nutritional risk and status, protein and energy needs, and spontaneous oral intake. The goal of nutritional care is to avoid the onset of malnutrition in patients at risk, and in undernourished patients to prevent its worsening and to correct it. Three different levels of nutritional intervention do exist: dietary counseling and oral nutritional supplements, enteral nutrition, and in case of enteral nutrition's contra-indications, intolerance or insufficiency, total or supplemental parenteral nutrition. The choice of feeding routes depends mainly on the expected duration of nutrition support. In every case, nutritional strategy should be regularly re-evaluated and adapted according to nutritional efficacy and disease evolution. (C) 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.