INTRODUCTION
Malnutrition is an increasingly recognized complication of chronic liver disease that has important prognostic implications. Malnourished patients with cirrhosis have a higher rate of complications and, overall, an increased mortality rate.1, 2 Malnutrition has significant implications for liver transplantation; it has been shown that patients with poor nutritional status before transplantation have increased complications and higher mortality rates postoperatively.3, 4, 5, 6 Screening all patients with chronic liver disease for nutritional abnormalities can identify those at risk of developing preventable complications.7 The initiation of nutritional therapy has the potential to reduce the risk of such complications, and to improve the overall mortality rate.