Best practice for managing nutrition in patients with severe CKD

A best practice guide has been produced to help healthcare professionals identify, assess and manage undernutrition in patients with severe chronic kidney disease (CKD).

The British Dietetic Association’s renal nutrition group has written the guide in partnership with the drug and healthcare products supplier Abbott.

The two-page guide highlights four steps to help staff decide on the best way to manage and treat patients.

Undernutrition is associated with poor outcomes in CKD patients, and can occur in up to half of cases, depending on the stage of the disease.

Helen MacLaughlin, a renal dietician at King’s College Hospital and chair of the renal nutrition group that developed the guide, said: ‘Nutrition plays a key role in the management of these patients, with undernutrition affecting many of them. Despite this, there is a lack of best practice guidance for renal-specific nutritional screening and treatment of undernutrition. This new tool helps fill the gap.’

Click here to read the best practice guide