Abstract
Malnutrition is a major complication of a number of illnesses that represent an independent risk factor of morbidity and mortality, not least with significant economic impacts in prolonged disease. Proper and timely diagnosis of this condition, and especially rational nutritional intervention, can significantly reduce the number of complications and shorten the length of hospitalization.
If the digestive tract is intact and functional, the more physiological enteral nutritional support is always preferred. If it is not possible to achieve the target nutritional needs orally, by adjusting the diet, by fortifying it or by adding nutritional preparations for sipping, the next step is the enteral nutrition by probe.
In the view of short to medium-term use, we have transnasal probes, gastric bolus nasogastric, and continuous postpyloric application to the jejunum then nasojejunal. In the case of long-term, especially domestic enteral support, from the point of view of nursing and the degree of complications, the most appropriate provision of nutritional is gastrostomy or jejunostomy.