Poor Appetite Is Associated with Six Month Mortality in Hospitalised Older Men and Women

Consequences of Anorexia of Aging in Hospital Settings: An Updated Review

The anorexia of aging is a widespread problem amongst older people, particularly in the hospital setting with up to 60% affected. Despite its high prevalence anorexia often goes undiagnosed in hospital, due to a lack of standardized assessment and evidence-based management, but also lack of knowledge regarding consequences. This review summarizes current evidence for anorexia of aging specific to the hospital setting, giving an overview of correlates of appetite in hospital and consequences of anorexia. It highlights an overall scarcity of research on this important clinical problem for hospitalized cohorts. The few studies point to the importance of anorexia of aging in major health burdens for older people, namely malnutrition, sarcopenia and reduced physical performance, as well as higher mortality. Further research is needed to assess temporal sequence in pathways of causality and to develop effective interventions to combat anorexia.

The associations between sleep quality, mood, pain and appetite in community dwelling older adults: a daily experience study

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the daily life experiences of sleep, mood, and pain in relation to appetite in community-dwelling older adults aged 75 years and older, stratified by sex.

DESIGN

Existing data from a daily experience study embedded in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (LASA) among the oldest-old (≥75 years).

SETTING

LASA is an ongoing cohort study of a nationally representative sample of older adults aged ≥55 years from three culturally distinct regions in the Netherlands.

PARTICIPANTS

434 community-dwelling older adults aged ≥75 years.

MEASUREMENTS

Participants filled-out a one-week diary on daily experience of pain, mood, last night sleep (10-point Likert scale), and appetite (5-point Likert scale) on five measurement occasions between 2016 and 2021. (Hybrid) linear mixed models were used to investigate overall, within-subject and between-subject association between mood, sleep, and pain (independent variables) and appetite (dependent variable), while correcting between-subject associations for season, age, educational level, partner status, body mass index, alcohol consumption, physical activity level, smoking status, chronic diseases and use of nervous system medication, stratified by sex.

RESULTS

Averaged over all days, males reported a poor appetite on 12% of the days and females on 19% of the days. Statistically significant between-subject associations with a poorer appetite were found for lower mood (unstandardized b = 0.084 [95% CI 0.043-0.126] (males), (b = 0.126 [95% CI 0.082-0.170] (females)), poorer sleep (b = 0.045 [95% CI 0.007-0.083] (males), (b = 0.51 [95% CI 0.017-0.085] (females)) and more severe pain in males only (b = 0.026 [95% CI 0.002-0.051]). Except for pain, within-subject associations were somewhat weaker: mood: b = 0.038 [95% CI 0.016-0.060] (males), (b = 0.082 [95% CI 0.061-0.104] (females)); sleep: b = 0.029 [95% CI 0.008-0.050] (males), (b = 0.15 [95% CI 0.005-0.025] (females)); and pain (b = 0.032 [95% CI 0.004-0.059] (males)).

CONCLUSIONS

This study found that poor sleep, low mood (more strongly in females) and more severe pain (males only) are associated with poor appetite in older adults on a daily level both within and between persons. Sex differences in factors related to poor appetite should be considered in future research.

Anorexia assessment using the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire and its association with activities of daily living in patients with stroke

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to validate the assessment of anorexia in patients with acute stroke using the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire.

METHODS

This cross-sectional observational study assessed appetite using the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire in patients with acute stroke at discharge from an acute care hospital. Additionally, the relationship between the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire and Mini Nutritional Assessment, Mini Nutritional Assessment - Short Form scores, skeletal muscle mass, muscle strength, and activities of daily living measured using the Functional Independence Measures for the motor domain was investigated. A multiple regression analysis was conducted with the Functional Independence Measure for the motor domain as the dependent variable and the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire and other confounding factors as explanatory variables to evaluate the association between the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire and functional outcomes.

RESULTS

Among the 234 patients with stroke analyzed in this study, the median Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire score was 15 (IQR = 13-16) points. The Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire score significantly correlated with weight change, Functional Independence Measure for the motor domain, nutritional assessment index, and energy and protein intake. However, no significant differences in body mass index, muscle mass, or muscle strength were observed. In the multiple regression analysis adjusted for confounders, the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire score (β = 0.106; P = 0.007) was independently associated with the Functional Independence Measure for the motor domain (adjusted R2 = 0.662).

CONCLUSIONS

This study's results found a significant correlation between Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire scores and nutritional status as well as an independent association with functional outcomes in patients with stroke. These findings suggest that the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire can be a valuable tool for evaluating anorexia in this patient population.

Appetite and its association with mortality in patients with advanced cancer - a Post-hoc Analysis from the Palliative D-study

BACKGROUND

Loss of appetite is a common nutrition symptom in patients with cancer. Understanding the trajectory of appetite could be of clinical use for prognostication in palliative cancer care. Our primary aim was to explore the association between self-assessed appetite and mortality in patients suffering from advanced cancer. Secondary aims included the relation between fatigue, albumin levels and CRP/albumin ratio and mortality. We also aimed to study potential sex-differences in the associations.

METHODS

Post-hoc analyses were performed using data from the Palliative D-study comprising 530 patients with cancer admitted to palliative care. Appetite and fatigue were assessed with the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS). Cox proportional hazards models were used to calculate Hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for exposures of appetite, fatigue, albumin and CRP/albumin ratio, and time from study inclusion to death or censoring. Analyses were also performed stratified by sex.

RESULTS

The follow-up time ranged between 7 to 1420 days. Moderate and poor appetite were significantly associated with a higher mortality rate compared to reporting a good appetite; HR 1.44 (95%CI: 1.16-1.79) and HR 1.78 (95%CI: 1.39-2.29), respectively. A higher mortality rate was also seen among participants reporting severe fatigue compared to those reporting no fatigue; HR 1.84 (95%CI:1.43-2.36). Participants with low albumin levels (< 25 g/L) and those in the highest tertile of CRP/albumin ratio, had higher mortality rates, HR 5.35 (95%CI:3.75-7.63) and HR 2.66 (95%CI:212-3.35), compared to participants with high albumin levels (> 36 g/L) and those in lowest tertile of CRP/albumin ratio. These associations were more pronounced in men than in women.

CONCLUSION

Poor appetite, severe fatigue, low albumin level and a high CRP/albumin ratio were associated with increased mortality rates among patients with advanced cancer. All these variables might be clinically useful for prognostication in palliative cancer care.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Clinicaltrial.gov. Identifier: NCT03038516;31, January 2017.

Association of anorexia/appetite loss with malnutrition and mortality in older populations: A systematic literature review

Anorexia/appetite loss in older subjects is frequently underrecognized in clinical practice, which may reflect deficient understanding of clinical sequelae. Therefore, we performed a systematic literature review to assess the morbidity and mortality burden of anorexia/appetite loss in older populations. Following PRISMA guidelines, searches were run (1 January 2011 to 31 July 2021) in PubMed, Embase® and Cochrane databases to identify English language studies of adults aged ≥ 65 years with anorexia/appetite loss. Two independent reviewers screened titles, abstracts and full text of identified records against pre-defined inclusion/exclusion criteria. Population demographics were extracted alongside risk of malnutrition, mortality and other outcomes of interest. Of 146 studies that underwent full-text review, 58 met eligibility criteria. Most studies were from Europe (n = 34; 58.6%) or Asia (n = 16; 27.6%), with few (n = 3; 5.2%) from the United States. Most were conducted in a community setting (n = 35; 60.3%), 12 (20.7%) were inpatient based (hospital/rehabilitation ward), 5 (8.6%) were in institutional care (nursing/care homes) and 7 (12.1%) were in other (mixed or outpatient) settings. One study reported results separately for community and institutional settings and is counted in both settings. Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire (SNAQ Simplified, n = 14) and subject-reported appetite questions (n = 11) were the most common methods used to assess anorexia/appetite loss, but substantial variability in assessment tools was observed across studies. The most commonly reported outcomes were malnutrition and mortality. Malnutrition was assessed in 15 studies, with all reporting a significantly higher risk of malnutrition in older individuals with anorexia/appetite loss (vs. without) regardless of country or healthcare setting (community n = 9, inpatient n = 2, institutional n = 3, other n = 2). Of 18 longitudinal studies that assessed mortality risk, 17 (94%) reported a significant association between anorexia/appetite loss and mortality regardless of either healthcare setting (community n = 9, inpatient n = 6, institutional n = 2) or method used to assess anorexia/appetite loss. This association between anorexia/appetite loss and mortality was observed in cohorts with cancer (as expected) but was also observed in older populations with a range of comorbid conditions other than cancer. Overall, our findings demonstrate that, among individuals aged ≥ 65 years, anorexia/appetite loss is associated with increased risk of malnutrition, mortality and other negative outcomes across community, care home and hospital settings. Such associations warrant efforts to improve and standardize screening, detection, assessment and management of anorexia/appetite loss in older adults.

Untangling the Complex Interplay between Social Isolation, Anorexia, Sarcopenia, and Mortality: Insights from a Longitudinal Study

BACKGROUND

Social isolation is a pervasive and debilitating condition that has adverse prognostic impacts. This condition often co-occurs with other geriatric syndromes, further exacerbating negative health outcomes. Given these considerations, the present study aims to elucidate the roles of social isolation in older adults with anorexia of aging and/or sarcopenia with respect to long-term mortality using a nationally representative cohort study.

METHODS

Data were obtained from the Taiwan Longitudinal Study on Aging (TLSA), with a sample size of 3,762 study participants aged 50 years and older. Data from 1999 (wave 4) to 2015 (wave 9) were analyzed. The TLSA questionnaire was used to define social isolation, anorexia, and sarcopenia. Logistic regressions were employed to explore the associations between social isolation, anorexia, and sarcopenia. The Cox proportional hazard model was utilized to examine the synergistic effects of social isolation and anorexia or sarcopenia on 16-year all-cause mortality.

RESULTS

After controlling for demographic information and comorbidities, older adults with social isolation were significantly associated with anorexia (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.46 [95% confidence interval: 1.00-2.12, p=0.0475]) and sarcopenia (aOR 1.35 [95% CI: 1.12-1.64, p=0.0021]). Furthermore, the synergistic effects of social isolation with anorexia (aOR 1.65 [95% CI: 1.25-2.18, p=0.0004]) or sarcopenia (aOR 1.65 [95% CI: 1.42-1.92, p<0.0001]) were both significantly associated with higher risks of all-cause mortality, while social isolation alone revealed borderline statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate that social isolation is closely linked to anorexia and sarcopenia among middle-aged and older adults. Additionally, social isolation significantly exacerbates the long-term mortality risk associated with anorexia of aging and sarcopenia. However, social isolation alone appears to have borderline long-term mortality risk in this cohort. These findings underscore the importance of addressing social isolation in older adults with anorexia and/or sarcopenia to optimize their health outcomes and mitigate long-term mortality risk.

Anorexia in Medicare Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries: A Claims-Based Analysis of Epidemiology and Mortality

OBJECTIVES

Loss of appetite in older adults can lead to malnutrition, weight loss, frailty, and death, but little is known about its epidemiology in the United States (US). The objective of this study was to estimate the annual prevalence and incidence of anorexia in older adults with Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) health insurance.

DESIGN

Retrospective and observational analysis of administrative health insurance claims data.

SETTING

This study included Medicare FFS claims from all settings (eg, hospital inpatient/outpatient, office, assisted living facility, skilled nursing facility, hospice, rehabilitation facility, home).

PARTICIPANTS

This study included all individuals aged 65 to 115 years old with continuous Medicare FFS medical coverage (Parts A and/or B) for at least one 12-month period from October 1, 2015, to September 30, 2021 (ie, approximately 30 million individuals each year).

INTERVENTION

Not applicable.

MEASUREMENTS

Anorexia was identified using medical claims with the ICD-10 diagnosis code "R63.0: Anorexia". This study compared individuals with anorexia to a control group without anorexia with respect to demographics, comorbidities using the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), Claims-based Frailty Index (CFI), and annual mortality. The annual prevalence and incidence of anorexia were estimated for each 12-month period from October 1, 2015, to September 30, 2021.

RESULTS

The number of individuals with anorexia ranged from 317,964 to 328,977 per year, a mean annual prevalence rate of 1.1%. The number of individuals newly diagnosed with anorexia ranged from 243,391 to 281,071 per year, a mean annual incidence rate of 0.9%. Individuals with anorexia had a mean (±standard deviation) age of 80.5±8.7 years (vs 74.9±7.5 years without anorexia; p<.001), 64.4% were female (vs 53.8%; p<.001), and 78.4% were White (vs 83.2%; p<.001). The most common CCI comorbidities for those with anorexia were chronic pulmonary disease (39.4%), dementia (38.3%), and peripheral vascular disease (38.0%). Median (interquartile range [IQR]) CCI with anorexia was 4 [5] (vs 1 [3] without anorexia; p<.001). The annual mortality rate among those with anorexia was 22.3% (vs 4.1% without anorexia; relative risk 5.49 [95% confidence interval, 5.45-5.53]).

CONCLUSION

Approximately 1% of all adults aged 65-115 years old with Medicare FFS insurance are diagnosed with anorexia each year based on ICD-10 codes reported in claims. These individuals have a higher comorbidity burden and an increased risk of annual mortality compared to those without a diagnosis of anorexia. Further analyses are needed to better understand the relationship between anorexia, comorbidities, frailty, mortality, and other health outcomes.

Mood and physical activity are associated with appetite in hospitalised older men and women

BACKGROUND

The anorexia of ageing is important in the development of malnutrition, frailty and sarcopenia amongst the older population and is a particular problem for hospital inpatients. This study assessed appetite-related factors in a group of hospitalised older adults, to identify potential preventive strategies.

DESIGN

Cross sectional observational study.

SETTING

Eleven wards in one large hospital in England.

SUBJECTS

Older inpatients aged ≥70 years, admitted non-electively.

METHODS

Appetite was assessed using the four-item Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire (SNAQ). Associations between SNAQ score and appetite-related factors present in the dataset were assessed in continuous analyses, including habitual physical activity, mood, medication, cognition and living circumstances.

RESULTS

200 participants, mean age of 80.7 years (SD 6.9); 40% were women. Prevalence of poor appetite was 43%. In univariate analyses, lower medication count, higher habitual physical activity and better mood were associated with higher SNAQ scores during admission. In a multivariate analysis, independent associations of higher habitual physical activity and better mood with higher SNAQ scores during hospital admission remained.

CONCLUSION

In this group of older adults, better mood and higher habitual physical activity were independently associated with better appetite during hospital admission. These are potentially modifiable factors and could be targets for future research into interventions for the anorexia of ageing in the hospitalised older population.

It's not only swallowing: a clinician primer to adult food refusal beyond dysphagia

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Medical teams are frequently faced with challenging clinical scenarios when their patients exhibit reduced intake of food and drink. Speech-language pathologists, who serve as oropharyngeal swallowing specialists in medical settings, are frequently the first to be summoned with the referral, 'Poor PO intake. Please evaluate and treat.' As our practices have illuminated, many differentials other than oropharyngeal dysphagia are often at play.

RECENT FINDINGS

Changes to taste, salivary supply/dry mouth, hunger drive, and psychosocial circumstances will significantly impact intake per os - each scenario to be explored further in this paper. Consequences to diminished nutrition and hydration include medical complications, lengthier hospital stays, and diminished quality of life.

SUMMARY

In this review, two medical speech-language pathologists detail more common alternative diagnoses that explain reduced intake by mouth amongst adults with acute and chronic diseases. Ultimately, a multidisciplinary approach should be considered when evaluating such patients to ensure a comprehensive and effective care plan.

Older individual's perceptions of appetite, its loss, influencing factors and adaptions to poor appetite. A qualitative study

Appetite loss in later life is common and associated with malnutrition; however, there is limited knowledge on older individuals' perspectives of appetite. This study aimed to explore what 'appetite' means to older adults, how they experience its change and perceived influences on this experience. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirteen participants, aged ≥65 years, in their own home, following a recent arm fracture. Transcripts were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis with inductive coding resulting in three themes. 1. 'Appetite as an emotional experience' encompassed positive or negative thoughts and feelings driving or undermining desire to eat. Mood, the appeal of food, cooking and effects of interaction and experiences with other people were factors in this narrative. 2. 'Appetite reflects a physical need' comprised physical bodily sensations or requirements as a driver for appetite with poor appetite resulting from early or over fullness. Declines with age, illness and less activity, were factors in this narrative. 3. 'Adaption to poor appetite aligns with perception of appetite and wider physical health' accounts for how experiential strategies, or practical strategies were used to mitigate poor appetite depending on the narrative of appetite loss, alongside perceptions of physical health and unplanned weight loss. Most individuals used one narrative in their discussions and reflections but for some, perceptions of appetite and its change were more complex. Understanding relationships between these perceptions of appetite and influential factors could facilitate development of multi-component, person-centred, strategies that are optimally meaningful and relevant to address appetite loss in later life.

The composition of the gut microbiome differs among community dwelling older people with good and poor appetite

BACKGROUND

Anorexia of ageing is common and important in the development of sarcopenia in older individuals. Links have been proposed between the gut microbiota and sarcopenia. Disordered gut function is also recognized in anorexia of ageing, but how this may relate to resident gut microbiota is unexplored. Understanding this relationship may provide a basis for novel interventions for anorexia of ageing and sarcopenia. This study explores compositional differences of the gut microbiota between community dwelling healthy older adults with good or poor appetite, and associated differences in sarcopenia.

METHODS

We assessed appetite by the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire (SNAQ) in members of the TwinsUK cohort aged ≥65 years. Using a pool of 776 individuals with existing microbiome data estimated from 16S rRNA sequencing data, we identified 102 cases (SNAQ score < 14) (95% female, mean age 68 years) matched to controls (SNAQ > 14) on body mass index, gender, age, diet, calorie consumption, frailty, antibiotic use, socio-economic status, and technical variables to minimize confounding microbiota associations. Species abundance and diversity, compositional differences, and paired differences in taxa abundance were compared between cases and controls. Additionally, we compared case and controls for sarcopenia as measured by muscle mass (appendicular lean mass/height² ) and strength (chair stand time in seconds).

RESULTS

Cases with poor appetite had reduced species richness and diversity of their gut microbiome (adjusted OBSERVED: beta = -0.2, P < 0.001; adjusted SHANNON: beta = -0.17, P = 0.0135), significant compositional differences (adjusted non-parametric multivariate analysis of variance, P = 0.0095), and significant differences in taxa abundance including reduction of genus Lachnospira (logFC = -1.015, q = 0.023). In all-female subgroup analysis, cases with poor appetite demonstrated reduction in muscle strength (11.03 s vs. 9.26 s, P = 0.02).

CONCLUSIONS

This study is the first to observe differences in the composition of gut microbiota between healthy community dwelling older individuals with good and poor appetite. We found female individuals with reduced muscle strength had poor appetite compared with those with normal strength. These associations require further examination to understand causality and mechanisms of interaction, to inform potential strategies targeting the gut microbiota as a novel intervention for anorexia of ageing and sarcopenia.