TREATMENT OF MALABSORPTION



The treatment of malabsorption is too diverse to be summarized in general terms and depends in considerable measure on the stage at which the defect occurs as well as its direct causation. Treat­ment may include cimetidine or ranitidine for a gastrinoma; the daily use of pancreatic enzyme preparations; antibiotics for the bacterial over­growth syndrome or Whipple’s disease; the use of a gluten-free diet for celiac disease; the use of me­dian chain fatty acids, which are more readily ab­sorbed; surgical repair of biliary obstruction, blind loops, or fistulas; or the chemotherapy of lymphoma. It may also require replacement ther­apy with fat-soluble vitamins and other specific nutrients. Rarely total parenteral nutrition may be indicated (e.g., for the short bowel syndrome).