A protocol for nutritional assessment in a community hospital.

A nutritional assessment protocol established by the Metabolic Support Service of three Chicago community hospitals has aided the support teams in providing optimal nutritional care. The assessment procedure described includes evaluation of the somatic and visceral protein compartments, cell-mediated immunity, and nitrogen balance. Through weekly repetitions of these indexes, nutritional assessment has become the objective basis for the diagnosis of the type and degree of malnutrition as well as the basis for the selection of the appropriate nutritional support and the evaluation of its effectiveness.