New Aspects in Clinical Nutrition [antikvár]

Foreword In intensive care medicine, respiratory, circulatory and renal function disturbances including the water and acid-base balances have traditionally been the primary subjects of interest in research and in hospitál practice. There is, however, much evidence that the metabolism and metabolic disturbances in the broadest sense as well as nutritional therapy warrant equal attention. This seems to be the case for the nutritional status as well as for the specific metabolically dependent organ functions, for example intestinal function, infection resistance and the activity of the immuné system. For this reason, the annual Hildesheim Intensive Care Symposia have been devoted principally to the metabolic and nutritional problems of critically ill patients since their commencement in 1990. For the same reason, the B. Braun Company's support for a new series of publications on the subject of infusion therapy and clinical nutrition is of benefit to the medical community and worthy of appreciation. The present volume is comprised of the papers given at the 7th Hildesheim Symposium on the subject of New Aspects in Clinical Nutrition." The reader will find expert opinions on a rangé of current scientific and clinical problems in the nutritional therapy of critically ill patients: the parenteral application of lipids, the choice of standardized or individual nutrition regimens, the significance of glutamine in clinical nutrition, the role of early enteral nutrition and finally aspects of a cost-benefit analysis. I certainly hope that the results of the Symposium will prove useful to the reader in answering any questions he might have regarding what form of infusion therapy is to be selected. Hildesheim in January 1998 H.-P. Schuster