Providing Nutritional Support to Critically Ill Adults

An update of 2009 guidelines provides more recommendations on feeding.

Sponsoring Organization: Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) and American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN)

Target Audience: All critical care providers, primarily physicians, nurses, dietitians, and pharmacists

Background

The ASPEN/SCCM intensive care unit (ICU) nutritional support guidelines of 2009 (JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr 2009; 33:277) have been updated, with an emphasis on inclusion of special ICU patient populations (e.g., those with organ failure, trauma, or burns). ASPEN recommends continued use of standard nutrition risk–assessment screening tools.

Key Points

No good data guide us toward the best way to determine caloric and protein needs. Because indirect calorimetry is not available in most ICUs, simple we…

Reviewing Author

Patricia Kritek, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsATS Scholar