Malnutrition

Managing malnutrition requires several steps:

1. Early screening of patients at risk: It is important to identify patients at risk of malnutrition as soon as possible, during the first contact with the patient, in consultation or on admission to hospital.
2. Diagnosis of malnutrition: This is made when a combination of a cause and a visible consequence is present (unintentional weight loss, a body mass index (BMI) below normal, or a decrease in muscle mass or strength).
3. Setting nutritional goals: Healthcare professionals set energy and protein intake goals to enrich the patient’s diet.
4. Checking food intake: We check whether the patient is meeting these goals. If not, oral nutritional supplements may be offered to be taken between meals.
5. Enteral nutrition: If nutritional supplements are not sufficient, enteral nutrition may be considered. This means that the patient receives food through a tube that reaches the stomach.
6. Parenteral nutrition: As a last resort, if enteral nutrition is insufficient, parenteral nutrition may be considered. This means that the patient receives nutrition directly into the veins.

Managing malnutrition requires close collaboration between different healthcare professionals, such as doctors, dietitians, nurses, speech therapists and pharmacists.

There are several situations in which people can become malnourished and need special assistance with eating. For example:

1. People with upper gastrointestinal cancer may have difficulty eating enough. They may need a tube inserted into their stomach or small intestine to help them eat.
2. People with an eating disorder such as anorexia may also become malnourished. They may temporarily require enteral nutrition, meaning special food adapted to what their body can use.
3. After bariatric surgery, patients may absorb insufficient amounts of certain nutrients. They need nutritional supplements to help prevent this.
4. After a cerebrovascular accident, patients may have difficulty swallowing. They may need food with a modified texture or, sometimes, enteral tube feeding if their level of consciousness is reduced.

Home enteral or parenteral nutrition is managed by an experienced multidisciplinary team (doctors, dietitians and nurses). They assist with the placement of feeding tubes, educate patients and their relatives, and organise consultations for close follow-up. Several hundred patients at Erasme benefit from this type of follow-up. We have all the necessary facilities to identify, manage and monitor patients through a multidisciplinary team with extensive expertise and genuine know-how.  

We have developed particular expertise in monitoring the nutritional problems of patients with pancreatic disease and oesophageal disease, for whom Erasme Hospital is an expert centre, thanks to our dedicated team and cutting-edge technologies.  

The approved centre for parenteral nutrition has a multidisciplinary team that works closely together to ensure optimal care for patients requiring long-term parenteral nutrition following benign or malignant intestinal diseases. 

Erasme Hospital is an excellent choice for patients seeking high-quality care and long-term follow-up for diseases requiring specialised nutritional management.