Nutritional Risks and Determinants in Older Adults Flashcards
malnutrition in older adults
often due to undernutrition in older adults (energy and/or nutrients), and can include obesity
sarcopenia in older adults
age-related loss of muscle mass and strength
cachexia in older adults
disease-related loss of muscle mass and strength; in the presence of fat mass loss
* underlying disease is the driver
malnutrition in older adults across different settings
- most malnourished in rehabs and hospitals
- community dwellers are the least malnourished
What are comprehensive assessments of nutritional status in older adults?
Used to diagnose malnutrition/undernutrition and develop and implement a treatment plan
* anthropometric
* clinical
* biomechanical
* dietary intake
Anthropometric assessments
- body mass index (BMI) - not great though
- body composition (skin folds, BIA, DXA)
- circumference
- unintentional weight loss of more than 5% BW in 1 month, 7.5% BW in 3 months, 10% BW in 6 months
clinical assessments
- nutrition focused physical assessment
- functional assessment
- cognitive and psychological function
- socioeconomic and health factors
What to look at with nutrition focused physical assessment
- musculature
- body fat
- mucosa
- hair
- skin
- nails
- eyes
What to look for with a functional assessment
- activities of daily living (ADL) - Activities needed to live life healthy and safe in a dignified way (bathing, washroom, feeding)
- instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) - Things that are great to be independant but are not life requirements (grocery shopping, laundry, managing finances)
- functional measures of muscle mass
Dietary Assessment
- 24-hour recall
- Food records (3-7 days)
- Food frequency questionnaire
- Diet history
Need to consider cognitive decline, remembering 3-7 day food records can be burdensome
Biochemical Assessment
- protein status assessment
- immune function assessment
- serum cholesterol
- vitamin and mineral biomarkers (interest in specific nutrient)
- Also blood samples, urine samples, biological tissue samples
protein status assessments
Usually need to be paired with other measures
* albumin
* transferrin
* prealbumin (transthyretin)
* retinol-binding protein
Immune function assessment
lymphocyte count - immune system is the most responsive organ to changes in nutrition status! T-cell is often used clinically
* C-reactive protein: if suspect infection or underlying inflammation
Why might serum cholesterol by assessed?
hypocholesterolemia occur
late in the course of malnutrition
What is the gold standard for nutritional assessment versus what is used?
Comprehensive assessment is the golden standard (anthropometrics, clinical, dietary and biochemical information) but is high resource intensive (expertise, time, costs), can’t be routine for all older adults so a screening tool is used instead
How do screening tools differ from a comprehensive nutritional assessment?
Is a quick yes and no that can be done rapidly to identify those who may benefit from further evaluation
* standardized methods to identify individuals for follow-up (some tools also assess presence of malnutrition)
* based on factors that are known to be related to nutritional status
* tools need to be reliable and valid
What are the common screening tools used?
- mini nutritional assessmnet (MNA) for older individuals
- Subjective global assessment (PGA) is used in the hospital
Factors Included in Screening and Assessment Tools
- Anthropometrics
- diet intake
- factors that effect food intake
- clinical condition
- social factors