Valutazione dello stato nutrizionale con bioimpedenziometria nei soggetti anoressici sottoposti a nutrizione parenterale totale

Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of total parenteral nutrition (TPN) in critical anorectic patients using bioimpedance analysis (BIA). Methods: Thirteen patients with anorexia nervosa underwent TPN after clinical and laboratory evaluation, for at least two months. BIA was performed before and after treatment. Results: TPN was discontinued in three patients because of septic or thrombotic complications. Ten patients resumed spontaneous food intake at the end of the treatment. BIA allowed us to evaluate the patients' nutritional as well as hydration status, showing a direct correlation between body mass index and extracellular water (p<0.0001). Discussion: Our data confirm that TPN is relatively safe and useful in critical anorectic patients. Moreover, this study shows that BIA can easily and reliably evaluate the body composition, accurately predicting free fat mass via extracellular water evaluation.