Pancreas: nutrition in severe pancreatitis: practice question

A General Surgery question in the style of the NEET PG paper. Answer it first, then read why the right option is right and why each of the others is wrong.

Try it

General Surgery · Pancreas: nutrition in severe pancreatitis

Sample item

A 50-year-old man with severe acute pancreatitis has been fasting for 3 days and is unable to eat. Which nutritional strategy is preferred?

Original practice item, not a recalled exam question. Nothing here is recorded.

The answer and the reasoning

C. Early enteral feeding by nasogastric or nasojejunal tube

Early enteral nutrition within 24 to 72 hours maintains gut mucosal integrity, reduces bacterial translocation and lowers infectious complications and mortality compared with parenteral nutrition. Parenteral nutrition is used only if enteral feeding is not tolerated or fails to meet needs. Strict fasting until enzymes normalise is no longer recommended.

Option by option

  • A. Total parenteral nutrition from day 1 in all patients

    Routine parenteral nutrition carries more catheter sepsis and offers no advantage.

  • B. Clear fluids only for 2 weeks

    Prolonged clear fluids provide inadequate calories and protein in severe catabolic illness.

  • C. Early enteral feeding by nasogastric or nasojejunal tube (correct)

    Correct. Early enteral feeding is safer and preserves the gut barrier.

  • D. Nil by mouth until serum lipase normalises

    Waiting for lipase to normalise prolongs starvation and increases infection risk.

Source note: Original NextPrep sample item — pending expert review. This item is original practice material awaiting independent expert review, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.

More General Surgery questions

Questions about this General Surgery question

What is the answer to this General Surgery question?

The best answer is C, Early enteral feeding by nasogastric or nasojejunal tube. Early enteral nutrition within 24 to 72 hours maintains gut mucosal integrity, reduces bacterial translocation and lowers infectious complications and mortality compared with parenteral nutrition.

Why is "Total parenteral nutrition from day 1 in all patients" not the answer?

Routine parenteral nutrition carries more catheter sepsis and offers no advantage.

Why is "Clear fluids only for 2 weeks" not the answer?

Prolonged clear fluids provide inadequate calories and protein in severe catabolic illness.

Why is "Nil by mouth until serum lipase normalises" not the answer?

Waiting for lipase to normalise prolongs starvation and increases infection risk.

What concept does this question test?

It tests Pancreas: nutrition in severe pancreatitis in General Surgery. Parenteral nutrition is used only if enteral feeding is not tolerated or fails to meet needs. Strict fasting until enzymes normalise is no longer recommended.

How hard is this question?

We tag it as an application question: it asks you to use a fact on a patient or a finding. The tag is our own editorial judgement, not an official difficulty rating, so read the reason for every option, not only the answer.

How should I study Pancreas: nutrition in severe pancreatitis?

Learn classic signs and eponyms alongside what they diagnose. Then use the flashcards and the other General Surgery questions on this site to test what stuck.

Is this a real NEET PG question?

No. It is an original practice item (editorial status: sample, version 1). NextPrep does not publish recalled or leaked questions, and independent faculty review of this item has not been completed yet, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.