American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN)

Definition of Terms, Style, and Conventions Used in ASPEN Board of DirectorsApproved Documents

The ASPEN Board of Directors has established a comprehensive set of guidelines to ensure that all official publications, clinical practice guidelines, position statements, and educational materials present information in a clear, consistent, and scientifically rigorous manner. This page summarizes the most important elements of those guidelines, covering terminology, stylistic preferences, formatting rules, and citation conventions.

1. Scope and Purpose

These guidelines apply to all documents that receive formal ASPEN Board approval, including but not limited to:

• Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs)
• Position Papers
• Consensus Statements
• Educational Modules and Webinars
• Policy Briefs

The primary goals are to promote:

• Clarity and readability for clinicians, dietitians, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals.
• Uniformity across publications, enabling rapid identification of ASPENendorsed material.
• Evidencebased language that minimizes ambiguity.

2. Terminology

ASPEN adopts a controlled vocabulary, largely derived from the MeSH hierarchy, with specific adaptations for nutrition therapy.

Term	Preferred Usage	Notes
Parenteral Nutrition (PN)	Use parenteral nutrition (lowercase) on first reference; abbreviation PN thereafter.	Do not use IV nutrition.
Enteral Nutrition (EN)	Use enteral nutrition on first reference; abbreviation EN thereafter.	Do not use tube feeding as a synonym in formal statements.
Nutrition Support Team (NST)	Capitalize as shown; abbreviation can be used after first use.	Refers to a multidisciplinary team recognized by ASPEN.
Micronutrients	Write as one word, lowercase, unless at the beginning of a sentence.	Includes vitamins and trace elements.
Critical Illness	Capitalize Critical Illness only when referring to the specific ASPEN Critical Illness classification.	Otherwise use lowercase.

3. Style Guidelines

3.1 General Writing Style

• Active voice: Prefer The dietitian assesses the patient over The patient is assessed by the dietitian.
• Plain language: Aim for a 9thgrade reading level; avoid jargon unless defined.
• Serial commas: Use the Oxford comma for clarity (e.g., protein, fat, and carbohydrate).
• Acronyms: Spell out on first appearance with the abbreviation in parentheses; do not redefine later.
• Numbers: Spell out numbers zero through nine; use figures for 10 and above, except when beginning a sentence.

3.2 Units and Measurements

Follow the International System of Units (SI) with the following exceptions approved by ASPEN:

• Energy: kcal (kilocalories) is retained for clinical familiarity.
• Fluid volume: mL is preferred; L may be used for large volumes.
• Weight: kg (kilograms) only; pounds must be converted to kg.

All units must be expressed without a space between the number and the unit symbol when the symbol is a single letter (e.g., 5kg, 250mL). For compound units, use a space (e.g., 3g/kg).

3.3 Formatting of Headings

Use a hierarchical numbering system:

1. Main Heading (Level1  Bold, 18pt)   1.1 Subheading (Level2  Bold, 16pt)       1.1.1 Subsubheading (Level3  Italic, 14pt)

Do not exceed three levels of nesting in most documents.

3.4 Tables and Figures

• Number tables and figures sequentially (Table1, Figure1, etc.).
• Provide a concise title above each table and a descriptive caption below each figure.
• All tables must be referenced in the text before they appear.
• Use highcontrast, grayscalefriendly palettes for print compatibility.

4. Citation and Reference Style

ASPEN adopts the APA 7th edition format with the following modifications:

• Authors full surnames and initials only (no first names).
• Journal titles are italicized, but article titles are sentence case without quotation marks.
• DOI is mandatory when available; URLs are included only for onlineonly resources.

Example:

Smith, J. A., & Lee, K. (2023). Optimizing parenteral nutrition for critically ill patients. Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, 47(3), 345356. https://doi.org/10.1002/jpen.1234

5. Ethical and Legal Considerations

All ASPENapproved documents must contain a disclosure statement indicating any conflicts of interest, funding sources, and the role of the sponsor (if any). The following template is recommended:

The authors declare no conflict of interest related to the content of this document. Funding for the work was provided by ASPEN. The sponsor had no influence on the study design, data collection, analysis, or manuscript preparation.

When patient data are presented, ensure compliance with HIPAA and obtain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval when required.

6. Review and Approval Process

1. Draft preparation: Author(s) follow the style guide and submit a manuscript to the ASPEN Editorial Office.
2. Internal review: Two peer reviewers from the Boards Clinical Committee evaluate content, evidence grading, and adherence to terminology.
3. Revision: Authors address reviewer comments within a 30day window.
4. Board endorsement: The revised document is presented at the Board meeting; a majority vote (75%) is required for approval.
5. Publication: Approved documents are posted on the ASPEN website and assigned a DOI.

7. Common Pitfalls to Avoid

• Mixing British and American English spelling (e.g., optimise vs. optimize).
• Using nonSI units such as grams per ounce without conversion.
• Inconsistent use of abbreviationsonce defined, keep the same abbreviation throughout.
• Omitting the serial comma, which can change the meaning of a list.
• Referencing a table or figure after it appears in the manuscript.

8. Helpful Resources

• ASPEN Clinical Practice Guidelines Library
• ASPEN Style Guide (PDF)
• APA 7th Edition Reference Examples
• MeSH Database

By adhering to these conventions, authors contribute to a coherent body of literature that enhances patient care, facilitates interdisciplinary communication, and upholds the scientific standards for which ASPEN is recognized.