ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the underlying disease processes causing diarrhea and malabsorption in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients, the rationale for elemental diet use, and research demonstrating the potential benefits of elemental diets in the dietary management of HIV patients with diarrhea or malabsorption. Elemental diets are complete diets that are lactose-free and low in fat, fiber, and residue, thus meeting guidelines for enteral formula selection for HIV patients with bowel disease and diarrhea. The low fiber and residue are designed to reduce stool bulk and frequency, reduce the rate of intestinal transit, and minimize the potential for fermentation of unabsorbed carbohydrate by colonic microbes. An elemental diet may be suitable for the dietary management of HIV patients with nutrient malabsorption in the absence of diarrhea, enteropathic diarrhea, or idiopathic diarrhea, providing that, in the latter two cases, the patient is not dehydrated.
