Objective: To summarize modern approaches as regards nutrition of hospitalized children from the aspect of present knowledge and results of the authors’ own investigation. The dietary system which can be provided to hospitalized children was therefore studied. Results: Repeated assessment of the nutritional status of hospitalized patients revealed frequently significant deviations of their nutritional status in relation to their disease. This suggests that during the diagnostic and therapeutic process of child patients adequate attention is not paid to the nutritional status. The investigation of 1997 - 1998 provided results on the hospital diet of children in theCR and differences between smaller departments and larger hospitals. It revealed e.g. that the trend of promotion of the importance of a nutritious diet in the Faculty Hospital Motol increased from 0.1% in 1981 to 9.0% in 1997. In 2002 an investigation of dietary habits of children hospitalized in the paediatric department of Motol hospital was made which proved that 2/3 of the children already when completely recovered refused some dietary constituents. At the time of their illness before admission to hospital 41.7% children had loss of appetite in their history and this persisted in ca 10% during hospitalization. Based on the assessed facts the author suggests to introduce a scoring system for evaluation of the nutritional risk of hospitalized patients according to an adopted and further modified model from other investigations. In the conclusion the author summarizes some of his own experience assembled at the First Paediatric Clinic with nutritional care of patients after discharge from hospital. Special attention is paid to long-term domiciliary parenteral nutrition which is the main part of treatment of some serious chronic diseases.

        Key words: dietary history, nutritional status, factor of nutritional risk, nutritional intervention, therapeutic diet, clinical nutrition, domiciliary parenteral nutrition