Nutritional management of acute and chronic liver disease.

Abstract

Malnutrition is a common problem in patients with acute and chronic liver disease, and it is near universal in patients undergoing liver transplantation. The cause of malnutrition in liver disease is multifactorial. This article reviews the prevalence of malnutrition, its pathophysiology, modalities of assessing nutritional status, and general guidelines for nutritional support in this patient population.