ABSTRACT
Malnutrition is a common complication of Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and is felt by many to play a significant and independent role in the morbidity and even mortality of the disease. Knowledge of its prevalence, severity, and progression are important to determine in order to evaluate the magnitude of the problem. The respective roles of the pathogenetic mechanisms, involving nutrient intake, nutrient absorption, and intermediary metabolism in producing malnutrition are important to determine to understand the causes of wasting. The course of wasting illnesses was evaluated by examining the extent of body cell mass depletion as a function of the time before death. The development of malnutrition in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is multifactoral and confounded by interlocking processes. Diagnosis of the cause of malnutrition can be determined using an algorithmic approach. The effect of nutritional support in AIDS is an important question, given the numbers of patients seen and the severity of the malnutrition.
