NUTRITIVE MIXTURES - FROM INTENSIVE-CARE UNIT TO HOME PATIENT

Nutritive mixtures: from intensive care unit to home patient. - Total parenteral nutrition with ''All in one'' nutritive mixtures is used in France from 1970. These advances ensure a more simple treatment for i ntensive care units. Nutritive mixtures provide the caloric and nitrog en dairy requirements added with micronutrients (electrolytes, trace e lements and vitamins) and this technique allows home parenteral nutrit ion. ''All in one'' nutritive mixtures have reduced the infectious com plications and the industrial quality control during parenteral solute s admiring has decreased again this infectious risk. So, nutritive mix tures result in sparing of nurse time, material for preparation and an tibiotic costs. Moreover, although the costs of home parenteral nutrit ion are considerable, this technique still reduces annual costs by 50 % to 70 %, avoids prolonged hospitalization and allows the patients to resume a more normal existence at home. Development of new technologi es and nutritive mixtures for specific malnutrition are now required t o improve treatment of these patients with insufficiency digestive tra ct.