Christine Smoliner

Cutoff percentiles of bioelectrical phase angle predict functionality, quality of life, and mortality in patients with cancer

BACKGROUND The bioelectrical phase angle has shown predictive potential in various diseases, but general cutoffs are lacking in the clinical setting. OBJECTIVES This study evaluated the prognostic value of the fifth percentile of sex-, age-, and body mass index-stratified phase angle reference values in patients with cancer with respect to nutritional and functional status, quality of life, and 6-mo mortality. In a second step, we also studied the effect of the standardized phase angle (with a z score to determine individual deviations from the population average) on these variables. DESIGN A total of 399 patients with cancer were studied. Phase angle was obtained with bioelectrical impedance analysis; muscle function was assessed by handgrip strength and peak expiratory flow. Quality of life was determined by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer questionnaire. Nutritional status was assessed by using Subjective Global Assessment. Survival of patients was documented after 6 mo. RESULTS Patients with a phase angle of less than the fifth reference percentile had significantly lower nutritional and functional status, impaired quality of life (P lt 0.0001), and increased mortality (P lt 0.001). The standardized phase angle emerged as a significant predictor for malnutrition and impaired functional status in generalized linear model regression analyses. It was also a stronger indicator of 6-mo survival than were malnutrition and disease severity in the Cox regression model (P lt 0.0001) and according to the receiver operating characteristic curve. CONCLUSIONS The standardized phase angle is an independent predictor for impaired nutritional and functional status and survival. The fifth phase angle reference percentile is a simple and prognostically relevant cutoff for detection of patients with cancer at risk for these factors.

Effects of food fortification on nutritional and functional status in frail elderly nursing home residents at risk of malnutrition

OBJECTIVE Malnutrition is a frequent problem in the elderly and is associated with an impaired functional status and higher morbidity and mortality. In this study we evaluated the effect of a 12-wk nutritional intervention with fortified food on nutritional and functional status in nursing home residents at risk of malnutrition. METHODS Nutritional status was assessed with the Mini Nutritional Assessment. Body composition was measured with bioelectrical impedance analysis. Functional status was assessed with handgrip strength, peak flow, the Barthel Index, and the Physical Functioning component of the Short Form 36 questionnaire. The residents were assigned to a group receiving the standard food of the nursing home or a group with a protein- and energy-enriched diet and snacks. RESULTS Sixty-five nursing home residents were included; 62 were at nutritional risk and 3 were severely malnourished according to the Mini Nutritional Assessment. Protein intake was significantly higher in the group on the enriched diet, whereas energy intake did not differ from the group on the standard diet. Both groups significantly improved most nutritional and body composition parameters during the intervention period. We did not observe convincing improvements in muscle function. Furthermore, the Barthel Index and the Physical Functioning component of the Short Form 36 questionnaire declined in all participants. CONCLUSION Standard food in this nursing home provided sufficient energy and macronutrients. Provision of snacks was not effective in increasing energy intake. Although nutritional status improved, functional status did not increase as a consequence. Functional frailty in this study population seems to be influenced more by age-related morbidity and immobilization than by nutritional intake.

Malnutrition and depression in the institutionalised elderly

Malnutrition and depression are highly prevalent in the institutionalised elderly and can lead to unfavourable outcomes. The aim of the present study was to assess associations between nutritional status and depressive symptoms and to explore their impact on self-caring capacity and quality of life (QoL) in elderly nursing-home residents (NHR). We conducted a cross-sectional study with 114 NHR (eighty-six female) with a mean age of 84.6 (sd 9.1) years. Nutritional status was assessed with the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA). Depressive symptoms were rated with the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). Self-caring capacity was measured with the Barthel index (BI) and QoL was assessed with the short-form thirty-six-item (SF-36) questionnaire. Of the NHR, twenty-six (22.8 %) were malnourished according to the MNA and sixty-six (57.9 %) were at nutritional risk. Of the residents, seventy-five could be assessed with the GDS, whereof sixteen (21.3 %) had major and twenty-six (34.7 %) had minor depressive symptoms. GDS scores tended to be higher in patients with impaired nutritional status (5.4 (sd 3.6) in well-nourished subjects and 6.9 (sd 3.2) in residents with malnutrition or at risk of malnutrition). The MNA correlated significantly with the GDS (r - 0.313; P = 0.006) and the GDS emerged as the only independent risk factor for malnutrition in a multiple regression analysis, whereas age, sex, care level, number of prescriptions and self-caring capacity had no influence. The BI was not reduced in patients with a high GDS. QoL was affected in malnourished residents as well as in study participants with depressive symptoms. The results of the present study point towards an association between malnutrition and depressive symptoms. However, the relationship is complex and it remains unclear whether depression in NHR is the cause or consequence of impaired nutritional status. Further studies are needed to identify the direction of this relationship and to assess the effect of depression treatment on nutritional and functional status as well as on QoL.

Prevalence of Sarcopenia in Geriatric Hospitalized Patients

OBJECTIVES Sarcopenia, a common syndrome in older individuals, is characterized by a progressive loss of muscle mass and muscle strength. Although data exist on the prevalence of sarcopenia in community-dwelling older individuals and nursing home residents, there has been no systematic research in hospitalized older patients according to newly developed criteria. DESIGN Cross-sectional study design. SETTING Acute geriatric ward of a general hospital. PARTICIPANTS Geriatric inpatients. MEASUREMENTS Hand grip strength was measured with the Jamar dynamometer, skeletal muscle index was calculated from raw data obtained from the bioelectrical impedance analysis, and physical function was assessed with the Short Physical Performance Battery. Sarcopenia was defined according to the criteria of the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP). RESULTS This study involved 198 patients from a geriatric acute ward. Mean age was 82.8 ± 5.9 years and 70.2% (n = 139) of the study participants were women. Thirteen patients (6.6%) were defined as sarcopenic and 37 (18.7%) were defined as severely sarcopenic. In a group comparison, patients with sarcopenia had a poorer nutritional status. In a binary logistic regression analysis, only body mass index was associated with sarcopenia, whereas gender, age, length of stay, cognitive function, and self-care capacity were not. CONCLUSION The prevalence of sarcopenia in geriatric hospitalized patients is high and does not differ from those of other older individuals. Nutritional status is associated with sarcopenia. The predictive value of sarcopenia regarding outcome for older individuals still requires evaluation.

Determinants of hand grip strength, knee extension strength and functional status in cancer patients

BACKGROUND & AIMS Decreased functionality and muscle weakness are prominent features in cancer patients. We investigated determinants of muscle function assessed by hand grip and knee extension strength as well as functional status in cancer patients. METHODS 189 consecutively admitted cancer patients (age 60.8 ± 12.7 years, 96 male) were recruited. Muscle function was assessed by hand grip and knee extension strength, and percentage of anticipated peak expiratory flow (%PEF). Functional status was determined by the EORTC questionnaire of quality of life. Nutritional status was assessed with Subjective Global Assessment (SGA). Age, gender, SGA, body mass index, clinical variables such as cancer location, presence of distant metastases, tumour burden according to TNM stage, UICC stage, number of drugs per day, number of comorbidities, type of treatment and depression were investigated as potential risk factors for muscle weakness and impaired functional status in a multiple regression analysis. RESULTS 80 patients (39 male) were classified moderately or severely malnourished. Malnutrition also emerged as an independent determinant for hand grip (estimated effect size 11%, p < 0.01), knee extension strength (estimated effect size 12%, p < 0.001), and peak expiratory flow (estimated effect size 30%, p < 0.008) and functional status (estimated effect size 19.4%, p < 0.001) next to age and gender, which were the strongest predictors. Among the disease parameters, only amount of daily medication exhibited a significant influence on knee extension strength. CONCLUSIONS Malnutrition is a disease independent risk factor for reduced muscle strength and functional status in cancer patients. Treatment of malnutrition might therefore also restore muscle strength.

Cost-effectiveness of a 3-month intervention with oral nutritional supplements in disease-related malnutrition: a randomised controlled pilot study

Background/Objectives:Nutritional intervention with oral nutritional supplements (ONS) has been shown to increase quality of life in malnourished patients. We investigated whether post-hospital supplementation with ONS is cost-effective according to international benchmarks in malnourished patients.Subjects/Methods:In total, 114 malnourished patients (50.6±16.1 years, 57 female) with benign gastrointestinal disease were included and randomised to receive either ONS for 3 months and dietary counselling at discharge (intervention, n=60) or only dietary counselling at discharge (control group, n=54). Nutritional status was assessed with Subjective Global Assessment. Intervention patients documented daily intake of ONS; quality of life was assessed with Short-Form (SF)-36 Health Survey and SF-36 values were transformed into health-status utilities. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were calculated by adopting the area under the curve method. We used two different pricing scenarios for ONS (minimum price: [euro ]2.30 and maximum: [euro ]2.93/tetrapack). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of supplementation with ONS was calculated for both price scenarios. All analyses were corrected for age and gender.Results:Intervention patients consumed 2.4±0.8 ONS per day. Intervention and control patients did not differ in their health status utilities at baseline (0.594±0.017 vs 0.619±0.018), but after 3 months, the health status utilities were significantly higher in intervention patients than in control patients (0.731±0.015 vs 0.671±0.016, P=0.028). Intervention was associated with significantly higher costs (ICER: [euro ]9497 and [euro ]12 099/additional QALY, respectively) but deemed cost-effective according to international thresholds (<[euro ]50 000/QALY).Conclusions:A 3-month intervention with ONS increases quality of life in malnourished patients. This treatment appears to be cost-effective according to international benchmarks.

Guideline clinical nutrition in patients with stroke

Stroke is regularly accompanied by dysphagia and other factors associated with decreased nutritional intake. Dysphagia with aspiration pneumonia and insufficient nutritional intake lead to worse outcome after stroke.This guideline is the first chapter of the guideline “Clinical Nutrition in Neurology” of the German Society for Clinical Nutrition (DGEM) which itself is one part of a comprehensive guideline about all areas of Clinical Nutrition. The thirty-one recommendations of the guideline are based on a systematic literature search and review, last updated December 31, 2011. All recommendations were discussed and consented at several consensus conferences with the entire DGEM guideline group. The recommendations underline the importance of an early screening and assessment of dysphagia and give advice for an evidence based and comprehensive nutritional management to avoid aspiration, malnutrition and dehydration.

Disease-related malnutrition but not underweight by BMI is reflected by disturbed electric tissue properties in the bioelectrical impedance vector analysis

The calculation of body composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis in sick and hospitalized patients is hampered due to altered hydration state. We wanted to investigate how disease-related malnutrition assessed by the Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) is reflected in the bioelectrical impedance vector analysis. Patients with benign gastrointestinal disease (n 242) were entered in the study. Nutritional status was assessed by SGA. Arm muscle and fat area were estimated by anthropometry, muscle function was determined by hand grip strength. Whole body impedance measurements were made at 50 kHz. Ninety-eight patients were considered well nourished (SGA A), ninety-four were classified moderately malnourished (SGA B) and fifty patients were classified severely malnourished (SGA C) according to the SGA. The mean vector was significantly displaced between SGA C and SGA A and B, showing comparable resistance with a significantly reduced reactance, indicating comparable hydration but loss of dielectrical mass of soft tissues. This distinctive vector migration was not seen when studying the patients grouped according to BMI. In conclusion, disease-related malnutrition as assessed by the SGA is associated with a distinctive bioelectrical vector migration, implying that abnormal tissue structure and not reduced body mass only occurs in disease-related malnutrition. These disturbances are not seen in underweight according to BMI. Bioelectrical impedance vector analysis appears to be an attractive tool to identify disease-related malnutrition and to monitor nutritional intervention.

Increased intestinal permeability in malnourished patients with liver cirrhosis

Background/objective:Malnutrition is a prominent feature in liver cirrhosis, with deleterious impact on clinical outcome. The objective of this study is to investigate whether malnutrition is associated with increased gastrointestinal permeability in liver cirrhosis reflected by altered urinary excretion of non-metabolizable sugar probes.Subjects/methods:Patients with advanced liver cirrhosis (Child Pugh Score B or C) were recruited. Nutritional status was determined according to the Subjective Global Assessment. Intestinal permeability was assessed by measuring the urinary excretion of orally administered, non-metabolized sugar probe molecules. The lactulose/mannitol ratio served as marker for intestinal permeability and reflects non-carrier-mediated transcellular and paracellular transport of the small intestine during the first 5 h. Sucrose recovery in urine within the first 5 h reflects gastroduodenal permeability; sucralose recovery in urine 5–26 h after consumption reflects colonic permeability.Results:Sixty-four patients (56.7±10.8 years; 33% female) were included in the study. Twenty-one patients were considered well nourished according to the Subjective Global Assessment, 23 moderately nourished and 20 patients severely malnourished; 74% had alcoholic liver disease and 67% had cirrhosis stage Child C. Gastroduodenal and colonic permeability was significantly increased in patients with liver cirrhosis compared with 63 healthy controls (0.23±0.22 and 1.37±1.42% vs 0.14±0.10 and 0.41±0.72% in controls), but not different between well and malnourished subjects. Small intestinal permeability (lactulose/mannitol ratio) was increased in all patients (0.069±0.055%) and further increased in malnourished patients (0.048±0.031% vs 0.084±0.061%, P=0.004) due to decreased mannitol recovery only.Conclusions:Gastric, small intestinal and even colonic permeability was altogether increased in liver cirrhosis, and malnutrition was associated with further increased small intestinal permeability indicative of villous atrophy.

The Impact of Self-Perceived Masticatory Function on Nutrition and Gastrointestinal Complaints in the Elderly

ObjectivesImpaired masticatory function is generally considered to be a contributing factor in the development of malnutrition (1, 2). Furthermore, the exclusion of essential and high-fibre foods from the subjects’ diets, due to chewing problems, may induce gastrointestinal disorders (3–5).ObjectiveThe impact of masticatory function on malnutrition and gastrointestinal symptoms was evaluated. Design, Setting, and Participants: This prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in four nursing homes in Berlin, Germany. 119 residents (mean 86, ± 8.0 years, 62–102) took part in the study.MeasurementsDental status, denture quality, prosthetic condition as well as masticatory ability and gastrointestinal symptoms were evaluated by clinical examination or interview. Nutritional state was determined according to Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA).ResultsThe mean Body Mass Index was 24.4, ±4.9 kg/m2 (17% < 20 kg/m2). The mean MNA was 22.5, ±4.3, 51.3% below normal. 54.5% of the dentures were poorly fitting. No significant relationships were found between the MNA and dental parameters except loose fit of dentures. However, there was significantly more food avoidance among the subjects with stated chewing problems, discomfort with dentures or ill-fitting dentures and there were significantly more digestive complaints among this group.ConclusionsImpairments of masticatory function may lead to food avoidance and to a higher incidence of digestive complaints.