Management of Gastrointestinal Failure in the Adult Critical Care Environment

Abstract

Most healthcare professionals concur on the necessity of providing nutrition to patients and acknowledge the heightened morbidity and mortality associated with malnutrition [1]. However, the delayed consequences of acute underfeeding complicate this responsibility, often relegating it to nursing staff, similar to the tasks of early mobilization and pressure injury prevention. Patients in the ICU typically present with acute organ failure(s) and the management thereof. While cardiac, pulmonary, and renal failures
are routinely evaluated and monitored, gastrointestinal failure remains inadequately addressed and acknowledged. This critical organ system has, until now, been omitted from the evaluation criteria of multiple organ failure scores, such as the SOFA score, which only includes the liver to represent the entire gastrointestinal tract [2].