UNDERNUTRITION IN INSTITUTIONALIZED ELDERLY PATIENTS WITH NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES: COMPARISON BETWEEN DIFFERENT DIAGNOSTIC CRITERIA

Objectives: To determine and compare the frequency of undernutrition in institutionalized elderly patients with neurological diseases at admission using different nutritional assessment tools. Design: Crosssectional observational study. Setting: One long-term care institution specialized in neurodegenerative diseases. Participants: 92 Elderly people (aged ≥ 65 years) with at least one neurological condition. Measurements: Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA), body mass index (BMI), mid-arm (MAC) and calf circumferences (CC) were used for nutritional status assessment. Presence and severity of dysphagia, polypharmacy and feeding difficulties were also assessed. Results: According to MNA, 77.1% of the participants were undernourished at admission. BMI identified 46.8%, MAC identified 44.6% and CC identified 22.8% of undernourished participants. Undernutrition was more frequent in Alzheimer’s disease, stroke and dementia syndromes. 63% had dysphagia for at least one food consistence and most of these patients were malnourished. MNA revealed best concordance with BMI and MAC than with CC. BMI and feeding difficulties were the major risk factors for undernutrition. Conclusion: Undernutrition prevalence in institutionalized elderly with neurological diseases at admission is high. Nutritional assessment tools revealed low concordance between them.