Nutrition behavior of malnourished HIV-infected patients and intensified oral nutritional intervention

Malnutrition and cachexia are characteristic symptoms of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 infection and AIDS. To identify risk situations that might affect nutritional behavior and status and to evaluate the therapeutic effect of an intensified oral nutritional intervention, we analyzed 81 consecutively treated homosexual HIV-infected outpatients with malnutrition retrospectively and could follow the outcome of a nutritional intervention prospectively in 54 of them. Nutritional therapy was ineffective for only 5 of the 54 patients; constant weight loss could be stopped in 31 of the patients, and 18 patients could even gain weight. We suggest intensified oral nutritional intervention should be an integral part of the treatment of HIV-infected patients to prevent or treat malnutrition.