OBJECTIVES: Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) is an essential pharmaceutical preparation used in hospitalized patients to whom enteral feeding is not possible or for critical care patients with compromised gastrointestinal tract function. Use of TPN reduce the incidence of malnutrition, which is a leading complication associated with various medical and surgical conditions. Hence the purpose of the study is to assess TPN utilization in surgical in-patients and its outcomes.  METHODS: Retrospective analysis of surgical in-patients receiving TPN from Jan 2011 to Dec 2012 in a tertiary care hospital was carried out.  Patients who were administered TPN were included in the study. Patient characteristics and treatment details were collected. Data were analyzed using SPSS ® version 20.0. RESULTS: A total of 120 patients were enrolled in the study.  The mean age of patients taking TPN was 48.9±17.7 years.  Majority of patients (67.5%) were males. A large proportion (40.8%) of the patients receiving TPN were those w underwent surgical procedures and had intestinal obstruction. Major metabolic complication included hypernatremia (26.5%) followed by hyperglycemia. Higher (79.5%) recovery rate was observed in patients who received TPN peripherally compared to those who received it via a central line. Among the patients receiving TNP, mortality was higher in patients with infections (31.9%) than without infection.  In 93.3% of the cases, TPN starts were considered to be appropriate indications and rest inappropriate. From an economical standpoint, the total avoidable cost with TPN mounted to 2,48,200 Indian Rupees.  CONCLUSIONS: Proper use of TPN reduced mortality in post-surgical patients. Greater attention to nutritional assessment to determine calorific need and nutritional requirement for individual patients should further improve benefits, reduce mortality and save treatment costs in hospitalized patients.