ABSTRACT
Enteral and parenteral nutrition are utilized in the hospital when patients cannot take adequate nutrients orally, but require nutrition to support or improve their nutritional status. With hospital stays decreasing in length or patients actually initiating nutrition support therapy without hospitalization, provision of enteral nutrition (EN) and parenteral nutrition (PN) in the home is a very real and viable option for completing a course of nutrition support or as lifetime therapy. The American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN) has developed guidelines that specically address the application of home specialized nutrition support (HSNS), stating that HSNS should be used in patients who cannot meet nutrient needs orally and who are able to receive therapy outside of an acute care facility.1 Additionally, these guidelines state that if HSNS is required, home EN is the preferred route when feasible. However, home PN should be used when the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is not functional or EN/oral intake insufcient to meet nutritional needs. It is also feasible to provide dual therapies, EN and PN in tandem, to achieve nutrient goals.
