Wasting and malnutrition in patients with HIV/AIDS

It is important for healthcare professionals caring for HIV-infected individuals to understand the relationship among nutrition, HIV infection, and the immune system. Progressive weight loss is a major component of the clinical syndrome in persons with HIV infection and AIDS. Weight loss occurs for a variety of reasons, which, when recognized, may be preventable or treatable. Malnutrition occurring with weight loss may adversely affect the function of the immune system and further impair the infected individual's ability to avoid or recover from infection. Nursing interventions in nutritional care, outlined in this article, can help these clients improve both the quantity and quality of their lives.