Evaluación del estado nutricio de los pacientes adultos mayores en periodo postoperatorio utilizando el instrumento Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) en Yucatán

Abstract

Background: During the nutritional assessment of elderly patients, it is important to take into account the physical changes of aging. It is well known that hospitalized patients are more vulnerable to develop malnutrition. The Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) questionnaire allows the adequate classification of the nutritional status of these patients. In Yucatan, there are no reports on the nutritional status among this group of patients. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess nutritional status of elderly patients in this referral hospital using the MNA questionnaire. Methods: A total of 100 hospitalized patients older than 60 years were evaluated from February to May 2019. The MNA questionnaire was applied, anthropometric measurements were collected and laboratory tests were done. Results: 55% were female and 45% were male. According to MNA, 53% of the population was classified at risk of malnutrition, 31% with malnutrition and 26% as having a normal nutritional status. Conclusions: The evaluation of the nutritional status among elderly hospitalized patients using the MNA showed that half of the population were at risk of malnutrition. Early recognition of malnutrition and adequate intervention among hospitalized patients can prevent later complications in the treatment and convalescence period.