Dietary therapy of steatorrhea

The dietary treatment of steatorrhea requires knowledge of the cause of the disease associated with the steatorrhea. Once the cause is established, then an approach to the dietary management can be adopted. Guidelines for treatment are reviewed in this article. Recommendations for either the treatment of the primary disease, limitation of fat intake, nutritional support, or pancreatic-enzyme replacement are made depending on the disease process. The most common disease entities causing steatorrhea are discussed in detail. Specific recommendations are made for the treatment of steatorrhea in cystic fibrosis of the child and adult, pancreatic insufficiency caused by chronic pancreatitis, gluten enteropathy, and the short-bowel syndrome. Emphasis is placed on the fact that each patient must be managed by correlating the cause of the steatorrhea with specific modalities of therapy.