Question

An 85 year old nursing home resident was transferred to the hospital with anorexia, malnutrition, and probable aspiration pneumonia. Which of the following nutrition intervention would be most appropriate for this patient?

1: Regular diet with supplements
2: Establish central access and initiate parenteral nutrition
3: Obtain peripheralaccess and initiate peripheralparenteral nutrition
4: Initiate enteral nutrition and consult for swallowing evaluation

Answer 1

For an elderly patient with anorexia, malnutrition, and probable aspiration pneumonia, enteral nutrition along with a swallowing evaluation is the most appropriate nutritional intervention.

Step-by-step explanation:

The most appropriate nutrition intervention for an 85-year-old nursing home resident who has been transferred to the hospital with anorexia, malnutrition, and probable aspiration pneumonia would be to initiate enteral nutrition and consult for a swallowing evaluation.

This approach provides nutrition directly to the gastrointestinal tract, which is generally preferable and more physiologically natural than parenteral nutrition.

Additionally, assessing the patient's ability to swallow safely can help prevent further episodes of aspiration pneumonia.Parenteral nutrition (whether central or peripheral) is usually considered when the gastrointestinal tract is non-functional.

Or when enteral nutrition is contraindicated. Regular diet with supplements might not be sufficient if the patient's anorexia prevents them from consuming enough food, and there is also the risk of aspiration if the swallowing function is compromised.

Enteral nutrition can be tailored to meet the specific nutritional needs of the patient and is often used in cases of severe malnutrition when oral intake is inadequate.