title: Prevalence of home artificial nutrition in Italy in 2005: a survey by the Italian Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (SINPE).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence (cases per million inhabitants) of home artificial nutrition (HAN), enteral (HEN) and parenteral (HPN), in Italy, grouped according to administrative regions, patient age and primary disease, and to analyze the impact both of the presence of an HAN regional regulation and of demographic characteristics.
  
  
  METHODS
  In April 2005, the Regional Coordinators of the Italian Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (SINPE) recorded all the ongoing cases of HAN using a structured questionnaire and were asked to estimate the representativeness of the collected sample with respect to the total expected HAN.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 6955 cases of HAN (93.5% adults, 6.5% pediatric patients < or = 18 years) were recorded in 16 of the 20 Italian regions (80% of the Italian population; sample representativeness 78%). HAN prevalence 152.6 (83.9% HEN, 16.1% HPN); the HAN range among the regions was: prevalence 28.1-519.8; oncological disease 13.8-75.7%, neurological disease 15.5-79.9%, intestinal failure 1.3-14.0%. An HAN regulation was present in 11 regions. A positive association (P=0.012) was found between the number of years since the regulation was issued and the HAN prevalence, and also between the % neurological patients and the population density (P=0.130) and the % inhabitants > or = 75 years (P=0.040).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The need for HAN regards a great number of patients throughout the country; there are substantial differences between the regions with respect to both the prevalence and the use of HAN in various disease categories. A specific regulation may favor the development of HAN.
authors.affiliation: Center for Chronic Intestinal Failure, Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University of Bologna, Via Massarenti, 9-40138 Bologna, Italy. loris.pironi@unibo.it
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pironi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Candusso
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Biondo
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bosco
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Castaldi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Contaldo
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Finocchiaro
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giannoni
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mazzuoli
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Orlandoni
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Palozzo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Panella
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pastò
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ruggeri
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sandri
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stella
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Toigo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D004750:Enteral Nutrition / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007410:Intestinal Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D016331:Parenteral Nutrition, Home / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires