A Comparison of Calorie and Protein Intake in Hospitalized Pediatric Oncology Patients Dining With a Caregiver Versus Patients Dining Alone: A Randomized, Prospective Clinical Trial

Abstract

Hospitalization and cancer therapy can contribute to decreased food intake in children and adolescents with cancer, making it a challenge to meet their nutritional needs. The affect of hospitalization and the eating environment for pediatric oncology patients has not been studied very well, and the effect of altering the social aspect of mealtime for hospitalized pediatric oncology patients has not been studied at all. The authors conducted a randomized, prospective clinical trial to determine if hospitalized pediatric oncology patients consume more protein and calories when eating with a family member or when eating alone in their room at mealtime. All food and beverage intake was recorded for 3 consecutive days, and a food service satisfaction survey was completed on Day 3. Food records were analyzed for calorie and protein intake, and surveys were analyzed for patient/parent satisfaction. The study was completed by 200 hospitalized patients and their parent/caregiver. Overall, neither calorie nor protein intake differed significantly between the two groups, but patient/parent satisfaction was significantly higher in the group of patients who dined with their caregiver. By using analysis of variance, the authors found that ideal body weight and years of sickness were significantly associated with calorie and protein intake.

A Systematic Review of Hospital Foodservice Patient Satisfaction Studies

“…16,[18][19][20][21][22]32,37 Of these, two used the same questions about satisfaction 16,22 ; both evaluated the influence of room service in pediatric settings, allowing patients to select foods from a menu in their room. Both showed an improvement in satisfaction, as was also observed by a randomized trial in children, but which used another tool.…”

“…[28][29][30][31] Only four studies were conducted in an inpatient pediatric setting. 16,21,22,32 Two studies explicitly excluded psychiatric and pediatric units from their data collection. 4,11 In addition to these two units, Tranter and colleagues 33 also excluded obstetrics, gynecology, and critical care units.…”

“…Twelve studies had a sample size <200 patients; 14,16,[20][21][22]27,28,[35][36][37][38][39] 10 studies had a sample size between 200 and 600 patients, 15,17,18,24,25,[29][30][31][32]34 and nine studies a sample size >600 patients. 3,11,13,19,23,26,29,33,40 Subjects were mostly inpatients, but in some studies discharged patients 11,14,15,21 or outpatients 21 were involved as well.…”

“…Seven studies used questionnaires consisting of fewer than 10 items, 16,19,22,23,28,32,33 11 studies used questionnaires with 10 to 20 items, 3,11,15,17,18,20,24,25,26,34,37 and four studies used questionnaires consisting of more than 20 items. 4,13,35,40 Only one study did not report the number of items on the questionnaire.…”

Nutrition in Pediatric Oncology Patients: A Systematic Review

“…Çocuklarda tedavinin neden olduğu iştah kaybını azaltmak için yemek dağıtım saatlerinin tedavi saatleriyle çakışmamasına dikkat edilmelidir (14). Ayrıca çocuğun ebeveyni ile birlikte yemek yemesi memnuniyetini arttırmaktadır (15). Hastanın beslenmesi, öykü ve ihtiyacına göre besin değeri yüksek, sevdiği gıdalarla zenginleştirmeye çalışılmalıdır (16).…”