PD081 - MALNUTRITION IN HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS RECEIVING PARENTERAL NUTRITION: COMPARISON BETWEEN BMI AND INSTANT NUTRITIONAL ASSESSMENT ACROSS AGE GROUPS

PD081

MALNUTRITION IN HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS RECEIVING PARENTERAL NUTRITION: COMPARISON BETWEEN BMI AND INSTANT NUTRITIONAL ASSESSMENT ACROSS AGE GROUPS

S. A. A. de Mello Neto^1,*, A. B. A. N. Cervantes Santos², T. D. R. Hortencio ², M. F. P. Nunes², C. A. Santos², G. S. de Godoy², M. C. Cruz², R. J. N. Nogueira¹

¹Medicine, University of Campinas, Campinas-SP, Brazil, ²Medicine, Faculdade São Leopoldo Mandic, Campinas-SP, Brazil

Rationale: Malnutrition is frequent among hospitalized patients receiving total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and is linked to adverse outcomes. Body mass index (BMI) is widely used but may underestimate malnutrition, particularly in older adults. This study compared the prevalence and clinical characteristics of malnutrition in elderly (≥65 years) and non-elderly (<65 years) patients using BMI and Instant Nutritional Assessment (INA), and evaluated agreement between methods.

Methods: This descriptive study included 781 hospitalized adults who underwent nutritional assessment. Malnutrition was defined as a BMI <18.5 kg/m² or, according to the INA, serum albumin <3.5 g/dL and lymphocyte count <1,500 cells/mm³. Patients were stratified by age, gender, ICU admission, type of surgery, and outcomes. The agreement between BMI and INA was analyzed. The study was approved by the institutional ethics committee (no. 1304/2011).

Results: A total of 781 patients were included (mean age 54.7 ± 16.4 years; 27.3% ≥65 years). Elderly patients had higher mortality (23.0% vs. 15.5%), with similar ICU admission rates. Malnutrition was more prevalent in the elderly and more frequently identified by INA than BMI (28.4% vs. 16.6%), with low concordance (5.3%). Patients identified only by INA were older and had higher mortality (22.1%) than those identified only by BMI (21.3%), whereas those identified by both methods had lower mortality (7.3%).

Conclusion: INA detected a higher prevalence of malnutrition, especially in elderly patients, and identified individuals with worse outcomes. These findings support the complementary use of BMI and INA in hospitalized patients receiving TPN.

References: Pablo AMR, Izaga MA, Alday LA. Assessment of nutritional status upon hospital admission: scores. Eur J Clin Nutr 2003;57(7):824–831.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared