Reimagining Home Enteral Nutrition Through Artificial Intelligence: A Narrative Review of Clinical, Operational, and Patient-Centered Applications
TL;DR
Artificial intelligence should be viewed as a complement to multidisciplinary HEN expertise, and the strongest near-term opportunities are clinician-supervised patient education, symptom triage, adherence support, remote monitoring, and workflow automation.
Abstract
Home enteral nutrition (HEN) is essential for patients with a functioning gastrointestinal tract who cannot meet nutritional needs orally, yet outpatient management remains complex, resource-intensive, and supported by a limited evidence base. Artificial intelligence (AI) may augment HEN care by extending monitoring, education, risk assessment, documentation support, and operational coordination into the home environment. Consistent with the narrative review format, this article uses a pragmatic, transparent synthesis of influential HEN-specific literature, relevant clinical nutrition evidence, and background knowledge from adjacent fields, including home healthcare, chronic disease management, oncology nutrition, telehealth, and software regulation. Direct evidence in established HEN populations remains scarce; therefore, most AI applications should be considered hypotheses or early implementation opportunities rather than proven standards of care. The strongest near-term opportunities are clinician-supervised patient education, symptom triage, adherence support, remote monitoring, and workflow automation. Predictive analytics, smart pumps, and precision enteral prescription tools are promising but require prospective HEN-specific validation, interoperability with electronic health records and home-infusion systems, reimbursement pathways, and governance safeguards. Key barriers include dataset bias, limited external validation, alert fatigue, privacy and regulatory concerns, unclear accountability, digital equity, cost uncertainty, and the risk of dehumanizing care. AI should be viewed as a complement to multidisciplinary HEN expertise. Priorities for the near future include HEN registries, standardized outcomes, prospective validation, pragmatic implementation trials, health-economic evaluation, and transparent oversight that preserves clinician accountability and patient-centered care.