The problem of malnutrition amongst acutely hospitalized elderly patients

Abstract

I N T R O D U C T I O N: The aim of the study was to assess the occurrence of malnutrition in patients who were hospitalized as a matter of urgency in the internal medicine ward, while taking into account the diseases that cause hospitalization. M A T E R I A L A N D M E T H O D S : A cross-sectional observational study was carried out on a sample of 320 elderly persons consecutively admitted to the department of internal medicine from September 2019 to January 2020. The nutritional status was measured by: a Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) questionnaire followed by anthropometric measurement (body mass and height) as well as the body mass index (BMI) and body composition analysis using the electric bioimpedance (BI) method. R E S U L T S: The studies showed malnutrition in 42.6% of men and in 44.7% of women, and severely malnutrition in 24% of men and 24.1% of women. Malnutrition was most often found in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and urinary tract infections, and severe malnutrition in patients with cardiovascular diseases. C O N C L U S I O N S: High rates of malnutrition and severe malnutrition occur in elderly patients urgently hospitalized due to internal diseases. SGA and BI are useful tools for controlling the nutritional status in this group of patients.

Keywords

• malnutrition
• geriatrics
• hospitalization
• subjective global assessment
• body mass index
• electric bioimpedance