Assessment of Nutritional Status of Hospitalized Elderly Patients in Makkah Governorate

Exploring the practice of nutritional support during hospitalization across physicians, dietitians, and pharmacists based in Saudi Arabia

Background

Nutritional support has a pivotal role in preventing and treating malnutrition. Recognizing the gaps in nutritional support practice can aid the development of tailored nutritional protocols. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the current practices, attitudes, and perceptions related to nutritional support for hospitalized patients in one of the largest Middle Eastern countries.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among different healthcare professionals currently working in hospitals in Saudi Arabia and involved in nutritional support practice. Data were collected using convenient sample via a self-administered web-based questionnaire.

Results

A total of 114 participants were included in this study. The majority were dietitians (54%), followed by physicians (33%) and pharmacists (12%), and were from the western region (71.9%). Various attitudes in many practices were observed among the participants. Only 44.7% of the participants had a formal nutritional support team. The mean confidence level of all respondents was significantly higher for enteral nutrition practice (7.7 ± 2.3) than for parenteral nutrition practice (6.1 ± 2.5) (p < 0.01). The confidence level for enteral nutrition practice was significantly influenced by nutritional qualification (β = 0.202, p < 0.05), type of healthcare facility (β = 0.210, p < 0.05), profession (β = -0.308, p < 0.01), and years of experience (β = 0.220, p < 0.05).

Conclusion

This study comprehensively assessed various aspects of nutritional support practice in Saudi Arabia. Healthcare practice of nutritional support should be guided by evidence-based guidelines. Professional qualification and training in nutritional support are essential for promoting practice in hospitals.

Effect of the Mini Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF) in Elderly Burn Patients

OBJECTIVE

Nutritional assessment can early identify patients who are malnourished and at risk of malnutrition. To examine the effect of nutritional status on wound healing in elderly burn patients, we used the MNA-SF to measure the nutritional status of elderly patients. This study aimed to examine the role of MNA-SF in elderly burn patients through the correlation analysis of wound-healing indicators and MNA-SF score.

DESIGN

Prospective observational and cross-sectional study.

METHODS

This study used the MNA-SF to investigate the elderly burn patients at the department of burn. According to the score, the patients fell into three groups: good nutritional status (more than 12 points), malnutrition risk (8~11 points), and malnutrition (0~7 points). At the same time, we measured and compared the wound-healing indicators among the three groups of patients, and detected the correlation.

RESULTS

The statistical analysis found gender had a slight influence on the score of nutritional status. While age was negatively correlated with the MNA-SF score and nutrition-related indicators. There was a low positive linear correlation between the wound healing percent area change or wound healing rate of patients and the score of the MNA-SF.

CONCLUSION

This study finds malnutrition is common among hospitalized elderly burn patients. The application of the MNA-SF in elderly burn patients is efficient and accurate to identify malnutrition early and prevent further obstruction of the normal wound healing, which can provide reference points for early nutrition intervention programs.

Mini Nutritional Assessment and physical function of older people in residential aged care facility, Bangladesh

BACKGROUND

Malnutrition may decrease physical function and exacerbate health conditions and thus have a negative effect on health-related quality of life of older people.

AIM

The study was aimed at evaluating the extent of malnutrition, physical function and other associated risk factors for the older persons (>65 years) living in the residential aged care facilities in Bangladesh.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was performed with a sample of 200 older people in various residential aged care facilities in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Nutritional status was evaluated using the Mini Nutritional Assessment. A structured questionnaire was used to assess the socioeconomic condition, dietary diversity, functional ability and other related risk factors for malnutrition.

RESULTS

According to the Mini Nutritional Assessment, 33.5% of participants living in residential aged care facilities were malnourished and 52.5% were at risk of malnutrition. Dietary diversity score differs significantly (p<0.001) among malnourished (3.78 ± 0.45), at risk of malnutrition (4.46 ± 0.98) and well-nourished (4.75 ± 1.11) groups. Twenty-five percent of the study participants reported limitations in mobility and 26.5% reported limitations in activities of daily living. Females were more vulnerable in terms of malnutrition and physical function than males. Mini Nutritional Assessment score is significantly correlated (p<0.05) with several risk factors for malnutrition such as body mass index, education level, meal, protein consumption, dietary diversity score, weight loss, reduced food intake, mobility and activities of daily living of the older people.

CONCLUSIONS

The study reaffirms that a high rate of malnutrition and risk of malnutrition is prevalent among aged care residents, who need special attention and may benefit from individualized nutrition interventions.

Nutritional status and its determinants among community-dwelling older adults in Jordan

BACKGROUND

The elderly population of Jordan is growing, due to the low mortality rate, high total fertility rate, and the high rate of forced migration from neighboring countries to Jordan in recent years. However, the prevalence of chronic illnesses associated with other comorbidities among the elderly population in Jordan is high. Maintaining a good nutritional status is essential for maintaining general health and well-being among older people.

AIM

The aim of this study is to identify the nutritional status of community-dwelling older adults in Jordan and determine its possible associated factors.

METHODOLOGY

A cross-sectional, descriptive design was utilized. Proportional multistage nonprobability sampling was employed to obtain a convenient sample of 225 Jordanian community-dwelling older adults. The participants were asked to complete a set of questionnaires related to nutritional status, which included a demographic information sheet, and the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA).

RESULTS

Among the sample, only 60 participants (26.7%) showed normal nutritional status. Most of the participants (n = 156; 68.3%) were found to be at risk of malnutrition, and nine participants (4%) were found to suffer from malnutrition. Advanced age (r = -0.631; p = 0.001), body mass index (BMI) (r = 0.546; p = 0.001), being single (mean (M) = 20.43, SD = 3.55), being male (M = 21.10, SD = 3.73), being unemployed (M = 21.71, SD = 3.51), being dependent in activities of daily living (ADLs) (M = 21.35; SD = 3.62), eating only two meals per day (M = 19.60; SD = 3.39), having suffered from illness or anxiety in the preceding 3 months (M = 21.11; SD = 2.39), having a mid-arm circumference of less than 31 cm (M = 19.51; SD = 3.47), low consumption of fruit and vegetables (M = 20.79; SD = 2.53), and polypharmacy (M = 20.62, SD = 4.09) were found to predict susceptibility to malnutrition among the participating older adults. Amongst the variables, age was identified as the most significant predictor of nutritional status and explained approximately 40% of the variance in nutritional status.

CONCLUSION

Malnutrition in older adults is a multifaceted phenomenon that needs to be integrated into the comprehensive assessment of older adults. It is essential that health-care professionals, particularly nurses, are fully aware of the associated risks of malnutrition among the elderly population. The high prevalence of the risk factors for malnutrition warrants conducting a controlled national-based assessment, using probability sampling, of the nutritional status among older adults in Jordan. Specifically, there is a real need to assess nutritional status among older adults who are at high risk of malnutrition, including senior, unmarried, male, unemployed, ADL dependent, and/or poly-medicated older adults.

Prevalence of malnutrition and associated factors among hospitalized elderly patients in King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Background

Malnutrition is a nutritional disorder that adversely affects the body from a functional or clinical perspective. It is very often observed in the elderly population. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of malnutrition among hospitalized elderly patients and its associated factors and outcomes in terms of length of stay and mortality in King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Methods

In a cross-sectional study, we evaluated the nutritional status of hospitalized elderly patients using the most recent version of the short form of Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA-SF).

Results

A total of 248 hospitalized patients were included (70.0 ± 7.7 years; 60% female). According to the MNA-SF, a total of 76.6% patients were either malnourished or at risk of malnutrition. Malnourished patients had significantly lower levels of serum albumin (28.2 ± 7.7), hemoglobin (10.5 ± 1.8), and lymphocyte (1.7 ± 0.91). They had increased tendency to stay in the hospital for longer durations (IQR, 5-11 days; median = 7 days) and had a mortality rate of 6.9%.

Conclusion

Malnutrition was highly prevalent among hospitalized elderly and was associated with increased length of stay and mortality.