Nutritional Status, Dietary and Nutrition Impact Symptoms of Cirrhotic Patients

Abstract

Aims: To describe the nutritional status and regimen of patients with cirrhosis at the Gastroenterology Department of Military Hospital 103. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 51 cirrhotic patients with mean age of 58 yrs. In all patients, dietary intake was assessed using the 24-h recall method and their nutritional status was identified by Subjective Global Assessment (SGA). Results: Dietary energy and protein were 22.4±9.3 kcal/kg/day and 1.1±0.5 g/kg/day, respectively. Most of the patients did not meet the requirements for energy (78.4%), protein (45.1%), fiber (100%) and other micronutrients (vitamin A, vitamin B1-B2-B6, zinc, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus). The malnutrition rate according to the SGA scale was 70.6%. The dietary energy and protein values ​​of the malnutrition group were significantly lower than those of the non-malnutrition group. Common clinical symptoms affecting eating were fatigue, early satiety, anorexia, pain, and dry mouth. Conclusions: The rate of malnutrition in patients with cirrhosis was high and symptoms affecting digestion were common. The dietary of most patients did not response to the needs of energy, protein, fiber and some other micronutrients.