Nutritional assessment and treatment of hospital malnutrition.

A thorough awareness of the nutritional and metabolic status of the hospitalized patient is crucial for all persons directly involved in patient care. The catabolic nature of the body's response to illness or injury induces a serious drain on vital organs and tissues. Therefore, a complete assessment of the body's various compartments must be carefully taken, and any nutritional depletion must be quickly alleviated. Due to the alarming incidence of often undetected severe malnutrition in hospitalized patients, if becomes imperative that attention be paid to nutritional status, to decrease unnecessary morbidity and mortality.