RDN-AP case studies
RDN-AP · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Advanced Practice (RDN-AP) credential is a board certification for dietitians who already hold the RDN and want formal recognition of advanced, autonomous practice. It signals that a clinician can manage complex nutrition problems independently - interpreting ambiguous assessment data, designing and adjusting nutrition support, and making decisions in critically ill, multimorbid, pediatric, and post-surgical populations. Candidates typically work in acute care, intensive care, transplant, oncology, or specialized pediatric settings, or hold roles that require advanced clinical judgment rather than routine screening and education. The exam is multiple choice and spans advanced clinical assessment and diagnosis, medical nutrition therapy in critical illness, enteral and parenteral nutrition, chronic disease and multimorbidity, pediatric and neonatal care, gastrointestinal, hepatic, and renal disorders, oncology, transplant and surgical nutrition, plus evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and interprofessional leadership and ethics. The RDN-AP case studies are 5 cases and about 3,819 words.
1Weight Change or Fluid Shift? Assessing Malnutrition in Decompensated Heart Failure
74-year-old woman is admitted with acute decompensated heart failure after 3 weeks of worsening dyspnea and leg edema. Admission weight is 68 kg; height 1.69 m.
819 words, about 4 min2Enteral Nutrition in Septic Shock With Refractory Hypotension and Severe Obesity
52-year-old man (weight 128 kg, height 1.77 m, BMI 41) is admitted with perforated diverticulitis and septic shock. He underwent damage-control laparotomy and has an open abdomen.
797 words, about 4 min3Preterm Infant With Feeding Intolerance and Suspected Necrotizing Enterocolitis
A 29-week-gestation infant is now 12 days old. Birth weight was 1,150 g; current weight is 1,080 g.
729 words, about 4 min4Chyle Leak After Esophagectomy: Enteral Versus Parenteral Nutrition
64-year-old man underwent Ivor Lewis esophagectomy for esophageal adenocarcinoma 5 days ago. A jejunostomy was placed at surgery.
739 words, about 4 min5Dialysis Patient With Advanced Dementia and Poor Intake: Feeding Tube Request
82-year-old woman with end-stage kidney disease on hemodialysis three times weekly and advanced dementia is admitted after a stroke. She has dysphagia, eats less than 25% of meals, and has had two aspiration pneumonias in 6 months.
735 words, about 4 min