[Realimentation in patients with anorexia nervosa and critical malnutrition--personal experience]

The objective of the work is to find a suitable realimentation procedure for patients with anorexia nervosa and critical malnutrition, whose mortality is round 6%. In a group of 10 patients aged 22.3 +/- 2.33 years during hospitalization for 10.0 +/- 6.11 days a weight increment of 5.0 +/- 1.16 kg was achieved. According to hitherto assembled experience and consistent with data in the literature it is best to start immediately after admission complete parenteral nutrition with a hyperalimentation regime regardless of the amount of food ingested by the patient. Thus within the shortest time maximum weight increments are achieved and the patients can be referred to the care of psychiatrists, which is the only causal treatment. Attempts of realimentation by enteral nutrition or increased oral ingestion in these patients were not successful and led only to a prolonged period of hospitalization.