Nutrition support in inflammatory bowel disease.

Many patients with the inflammatory bowel diseases, Crohn's disease, or ulcerative colitis have significant protein-calorie malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies. Factors that contribute to these nutritional deficits include inadequate nutrient intake, malabsorption, excessive nutrient secretion across the diseased gastrointestinal tract, drug-nutrient interactions, and increased nutrient requirements. In this review, the use of enteral and parenteral nutrition support as primary therapy for active Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis is discussed. Other roles for nutrition support in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, including preoperative nutrition support, nutritional treatment of intestinal fistulas and growth retardation, and home parenteral nutrition for gut failure, are also reviewed.