Enteral nutrition
The term EN is used to comprise all forms of
nutritional support that imply the use of ‘‘dietary
foods for special medical purposes’’ as defined in
the European legal regulation of the commission
directive 1999/21/EC of 25 March 1999,
Any dietary food for special medical purposes
designed for use in tube feeding or as an ONS.
Enteral formulae can be (1)nutritionally complete,
when given in the recommended amount, to
be used as a sole source of nutrition or as a
supplement to the patient’s normal intake, or (2)
nutritionally incomplete, to be used as a supple-ment only and not as a sole source of nutrition.