Nutritional assessment in geriatrics

Author: Tajana Pavić, Valentina Ratkajec, Lana Palčić, Spomenka Tomek-Roksandić
Abstract:

Changes that occur naturally during the ageing process put the elderly population at greater risk of malnourishment. Altered body composition and the reduction of skeletal muscle mass is a key clinical feature of malnutrition, and should be a criterion for diagnosis as well as treatment and follow-up of patients with malnutrition. Assessing the nutritional status of elderly patients is an integral component of a comprehensive geriatric assessment. Screening tools, anthropometric measurements and body composition estimations are useful methods for assessing nutritional status in seniors, although a gold standard which should be used for the geriatric population has not been developed yet.

Key words:
geriatric medicine; malnutrition; nutritional assessment; sarcopenia; screening


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