[Protein-calorie malnutrition in the elderly patient].

Protein-energetic malnutrition is frequent in geriatric practice and particularly among hospitalized patients. It has many different causes and its consequences frequently hinder medical and surgical treatments. It is difficult to diagnose and the measures to take belong to the field of social medicine, nutrition, biological research and education. A multidisciplinary approach is therefore essential in this field which needs to be developed.