An increase in human life expectancy naturally leads to an increase in diseases and conditions that require specific means and methods of treatment, rehabilitation and compensation for lost functions. Thus, the malnutrition syndrome occurs in 25% of elderly people and 65% of senile patients. The main problems of gerontological patients with surgical pathology are: comorbidity, high risk of thrombotic and thromboembolic complications, late hospitalization. The danger of malnutrition syndrome lies in the fact that elderly and senile people become dependent on constant outside help, and also contributes to the addition of other geriatric syndromes. With insufficient intake of food components, disturbances in metabolic processes occur, leading to functional and organic disorders of various body systems in elderly and senile patients. In surgical patients, malnutrition syndrome can act as a predictor and an independent risk factor for an unfavorable outcome of surgical treatment of patients.