Psychiatria pre prax 3/2003

Enteral nutrition in gerontopsychiatry

The risk of malnutrition is higher in senile patients suffering from psychiatric disorders. This refers especially to hospitalized patients and to those who are of a weaker social background. Malnutrition is characterized mainly by skeletal muscle loss, it could be unrecognizable though because of preserved storages of lipids. The state could be worsened by the course of an acute illness, which promote further muscle loss and thus cause an impairment of functional reserves of organism. Under such conditions it is necessary to impose a proper nutritional support. The article describes methods of enteral nutritional support appropriate especially for gerontopsychiatric departments. A survey of available applications of enteral nutrition in our country is given.

Keywords: gerontopsychiatry, malnutrition, enteral nutrition, muscle loss, nutritional support, food intake.