Abstract
The purpose of this descriptive research design study among clinical registered dietitian nutritionists (CRDNs) (n = 7) was to identify frequently used nutrition diagnoses (NDs) in acute care practice and validate the defining characteristics for the prevalent NDs. Data were collected with 2 instruments and analyzed using descriptive statistics. CRDNs identified 19 of 84 NDs as prevalent. Content validation resulted in 24% (n = 64) of the characteristics as critical, with an average of 3.6 critical characteristics for each ND. This pilot study limits generalization of the findings but contributes important information about the descriptive diagnoses in this area of practice.