Stratégies de prise en charge nutritionnelle spécifiques : l'enfant et l'adulte jeune atteints d'un handicap

Handicapped children are at high risk for malnutrition. In this situation nutritional assessment becomes difficult to perform due to musculo-skeletal deformities, patient's collaboration. In any case nutritional indices require simple measures: weight and height. Nutritional care must be presented early to parents in order to start as soon as possible when oral intake does not meet nutritional needs. For the handicapped child, surgery is often a major stress that requires nutritional care before, during and after. Obesity often aggravates the burden of the handicap and does not provide protection against malnutrition. Like in non-handicapped persons nutritional care can improve the outcome and well being of handicapped children.