Definition
Any route of medication administration that bypasses the digestive system, typically intravenous or intramuscular. When 'take with food' isn't an option.
Example Usage
The dehydrated patient needed parenteral nutrition through a central line, since their gastrointestinal tract had temporarily gone on strike.
Origin
From Greek 'para' (beside) and 'enteron' (intestine), literally 'beside the intestine'
Fun Fact
Total parenteral nutrition (TPN) can keep people alive for years without eating a single bite, though it costs thousands of dollars monthly and makes food lovers weep.
Source: Pharmacology and nutrition terminology
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