Malnutrition Screening and Assessment

Abstract

Malnutrition is a serious problem with a negative impact on the quality of life and the evolution of patients, contributing to an increase in morbidity, length of hospital stay, mortality, and health spending. Early identification is fundamental to implement the necessary therapeutic actions, involving adequate nutritional support to prevent or reverse malnutrition. This review presents two complementary methods of fighting malnutrition: nutritional screening and nutritional assessment. Nutritional risk screening is conducted using simple, quick-to-perform tools, and is the first line of action in detecting at-risk patients. It should be implemented systematically and periodically on admission to hospital or residential care, as well as on an outpatient basis for patients with chronic conditions. Once patients with a nutritional risk are detected, they should undergo a more detailed nutritional assessment to identify and quantify the type and degree of malnutrition. This should include health history and clinical examination, dietary history, anthropometric measurements, evaluation of the degree of aggression determined by the disease, functional assessment, and, whenever possible, some method of measuring body composition.