Dana L. Craven

Malnutrition screening of older adults in the community setting: practices reported by Australian dietitians

Aim: To explore malnutrition screening practices by dietitians working with community dwelling older adults in Australia. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional online survey of dietitians providing dietetic care to older adults (aged ≥65 years) was conducted in November to December 2014 using a three-part 25-item questionnaire with scaled, closed and open-ended questions. Results: One hundred and thirty-three community dietitians participated in the survey. Seventy-seven percent of them reported malnutrition screening was conducted in the workplace and this was highest in government organisations. The majority of dietitians (75%) reported a screening tool was used and the Malnutrition Screening Tool was most commonly used. Independent of level of experience, the majority of dietitians considered malnutrition screening important and agreed with the need for routine screening. Sixty-six percent of dietitians reported that clients screened and found to be at risk of malnutrition frequently refused nutrition assessment. Conclusion: Reported malnutrition screening practices varied considerably across all organisations and states. Although routine screening for malnutrition risk is recommended, refusal for nutritional assessment after positive screening is common and requires further investigation. It is not clear how the term ‘malnutrition’ is perceived by the elderly and further investigation into their perceptions would be useful, particularly as offer for nutrition care is frequently declined.

Barriers and enablers to malnutrition screening of community-living older adults: A content analysis of survey data by Australian dietitians.

Many older adults living in their own homes are at nutrition risk which, left untreated, can lead to the state of malnutrition. To reduce the prevalence of malnutrition among community-living older adults (CLOAs), risk factors should be identified and addressed early via malnutrition screening. The aim of this study was to identify barriers and enablers to malnutrition screening of CLOAs from the perspective of dietitians. Ninety-two dietitians working for government, not-for-profit and private organisations in Australia provided written comments to open-ended survey questions. Textual data were analysed using content analysis, resulting in four key categories of organisational, staff, screening and CLOA factors. Insufficient time to screen and lack of knowledge by non-dietetic staff and CLOAs about malnutrition were identified as the strongest barriers. Organisational factors of screening policy and procedures and the provision of education and training emerged as the strongest enablers. The findings from this study can provide guidance to organisations and healthcare practitioners considering the implementation of routine malnutrition screening of CLOAs. Increased awareness about malnutrition and the associated outcomes may help to reduce nutrition risk among CLOAs.

Is telehealth effective in managing malnutrition in community-dwelling older adults? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Telehealth offers a feasible method to provide nutrition support to malnourished older adults. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to determine the efficacy of telehealth methods in delivering malnutrition-related interventions to community-dwelling older adults. Studies in any language were searched in five electronic databases from inception to 2nd November 2017. Quality of the evidence was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool and the GRADE approach. Nine studies were identified, with results published across 13 included publications, which had mostly low to unclear risk of bias. There were two interventions delivered to disease-specific groups, one with kidney disease and one with cancer; the remaining seven interventions were delivered to patients with mixed morbidities following discharge from an inpatient facility. Seven studies delivered telehealth via telephone consultations and two used internet-enabled telemedicine devices. Ten meta-analyses were performed. Malnutrition-focused telehealth interventions were found to improve protein intake in older adults by 0.13 g/kg body weight per day ([95%CI: 0.01-0.25]; P = .03; n = 2 studies; n = 200 participants; I2 = 41%; GRADE level: low) and to improve quality of life (standardised mean difference: 0.55 [95%CI: 0.11-0.99]; P = .01; n = 4 studies with n = 9 quality-of-life tools; n = 248 participants; I2 = 84%: GRADE level: very low). There were also trends towards improved nutrition status, physical function, energy intake, hospital readmission rates and mortality in the intervention groups. Overall, this review found telehealth is an effective method to deliver malnutrition-related interventions to older adults living at home, and is likely to result in clinical improvements compared with usual care or no intervention. However, further research with larger samples and stronger study designs are required to strengthen the body of evidence.

Community-living older adults’ perceptions of body weight, signs of malnutrition and sources of information: A descriptive analysis of survey data

BackgroundCommunity-living older adults may be susceptible to malnutrition (undernutrition) due to both physiological and non-physiological causes. The condition develops over time and the early signs and symptoms may not be obvious. Therefore awareness and early identification of nutrition risk factors may prevent, or at least slow, the progression of malnutrition.ObjectiveTo describe community-living older adults’ understanding of the signs of malnutrition, where they would seek malnutrition information and their selfperception of body weight.DesignOlder adults (aged ≥ 65 years) living in the community setting completed an online or paper based questionnaire between May and August 2016. The questionnaire contained a mix of closed and open questions which related to weight perception, weight changes, perceived signs of malnutrition and sources of malnutrition information. Body mass index (BMI) from self-reported data was classified using BMI reference ranges for older adults and compared to self-perceived weight status. Textual data regarding the signs of malnutrition were analysed and reviewed by two authors using content analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to describe participant characteristics.ResultsA total of 344 responses were received, the majority (90%) completed online. Mean participant age was 73 years and 57% of participants were female. Most (92%) reported their health to be good/very good. Body weight was perceived to be just right or more than it should be by 87% of underweight women and 97% of underweight men. Although 71% of the participants indicated their body weight had remained stable in the past six months, 37% reported they had been trying to change their weight. Signs of malnutrition resulted in four key categories of (i) psychological, (ii) physical appearance, (ii) bodily function and (iv) weight change. Very few reported the need to locate malnutrition information and indicated the top three sources for information would be (i) general practitioner, (ii) dietitian or (iii) internet.ConclusionThis paper has presented useful data about malnutrition from the perspective of the community-living older adult. We found there may be uncertainty about the best weight, for older age. As many indicated they had been trying to change their weight, awareness needs to be raised regarding the impact of weight changes on health outcomes in this population. In this study, the internet appeared to be a key provider of nutrition information. Healthcare professionals need to consider how this can be used in an informative manner among community living older adults as a tool for raising awareness about nutrition risk and malnutrition.

Nutrition risk measured online in community-living older Australians

Abstract Many community-living older adults experience the condition of malnutrition and the causes are complex and multi-factorial. This study examined nutrition risk in a sample of community-living older Australians (n = 77, age ≥65 years) using an online, self-administered survey consisting of two validated questionnaires (SCREEN II and SF-12). We found a significant relationship between health status and nutrition risk; those with higher self-rated health status had lower nutrition risk. Forty percent of the participants were categorized at high nutritional risk, 26% at moderate nutritional risk and 34% not at nutritional risk. The most common nutrition risk factors were: (i) weight perception (perceiving weight to be more than it should); (ii) food avoidance; (iii) low intake of milk, milk products and alternatives; and (iv) finding meal preparation a chore. Many nutrition-risk factors were consistent with population survey data highlighting the need for greater awareness of nutritional requirements for healthy ageing.

A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the prevalence of protein-energy malnutrition: associations with geographical region and sex

Background protein-energy malnutrition is a major health concern in home-dwelling older adults, particularly in the context of an ageing population. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis was undertaken to determine the prevalence of malnutrition among older adults living independently in the community according to geographical region, sampling frame, rurality and sex. Methods six electronic databases were searched until September 2016. Original research studies which used the Mini Nutritional Assessment, Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment or Subjective Global Assessment to determine nutrition status in community samples with a mean age of ≥65 years were critically appraised and pooled using meta-analysis. Meta-regression was used to explore predictors of malnutrition prevalence in pooled statistics with high heterogeneity. Results 111 studies from 38 countries (n = 69,702 participants) were included. The pooled prevalence of malnutrition in the older community setting ranged from 0.8% (95% CI: 0.2-1.7%) in Northern Europe to 24.6% (95% CI: 0.0-67.9%) in South-East Asia. Of all sampling frames, participants receiving homecare services had the highest prevalence at 14.6% (95% CI: 9.9-20.0%). Malnutrition prevalence in rural communities (9.9%; 95% CI: 4.5-16.8%) was double that in urban communities (5.7%; 95% CI: 4.2-7.3%) and higher among females than males (odds ratio = 1.45 [95% CI: 1.27-1.66]; P < 0.00001). Conclusions the results of this review provide strategic insight to develop public and community health priorities for preventing malnutrition and associated poor health outcomes.