TPN

1 of 2

noun

ˌtē-ˌpē-ˈen 

: nadp

TPN

2 of 2

abbreviation

total parenteral nutrition

For patients who can't eat afterward or can't eat enough, doctors can now deliver the essential nutrients through a tube that empties into the stomach (enteral feeding) or into the blood stream through a tube (total parenteral nutrition, or TPN).

—Jason Forsythe and Doug M. Podolsky

TPN (Total Parenteral Nutrition) provides all the known necessary nutrients in the proper amounts (salts, glucose, amino acids, lipids, and vitamins).

—Harriet Hall

Word History

Etymology

Noun

triphosphopyridine nucleotide

First Known Use

Noun

1938, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

TPN

1 of 2 noun

ˈtē-ˈpē-ˈen 

: nadp

TPN

2 of 2 abbreviation

total parenteral nutrition