The application value of mini-nutritional assessment short-form in screening and evaluating nutritional status in the elderly hospitalized patients with malignant tumor: a multicenter study

Objective To investigate the application value of mini-nutritional assessment short-form(MNA-SF)in screening and evaluating nutritional status in elderly hospitalized patients with malignant tumor. Methods 1472 elderly hospitalized patients(≥65 years old)with malignant tumor were enrolled and prospectively studied for evaluating the nutritional status by nutritional risk screening 2002(NRS 2002)assessment.Indicators of clinical outcomes were summarized.The consistencies of MNA-SF with body mass index(BMI), grip and results of NRS 2002 assessment, and the relationship between the different nutritional status and clinical outcomes were analyzed. Results The patients meeting the inclusion/exclusion criteria were aged(72.1±5.9)years, with BMI of(22.3±3.7)kg/m2 and grip of(21.7±19.0)kg.Among 16.7% of the malnourished patients with malignant tumors, pancreatic cancer(30.9%), bile duct cancer(24.1%)and esophageal cancer(21.2%)occupied the top three incidence of malnutrition, with the lowest(5.4%)incidence in breast cancer.Among 59.2% of patients being malnourished(16.7%)or at risk(42.5%)of malnutrition, the highest incidence was in bile duct cancer(82.8%), and lowest one was in breast cancer(28.6%). MNA-SF-discriminated malnutrition(0~7 points)showed a great agreement with malnutrition evaluation by BMI(<18.5), but had a poor agreement with grip in screening malnutrition.MNA-SF-discriminated nutrition problem(malnourishment plus at risk of malnutrition)showed a great agreement with NRS 2002-discovered nutrition problem(score≥3). Under-nourished patients had a higher infection complication(9.29% vs.5.14%, P=0.006)and longer hospital stays(15.4 d vs.12.8 d, P<0.01)as compared with patients with normal nutrition status. Conclusions The prevalence and risk factors for malnutrition are higher in elderly patients with malignant tumor.Poor nutritional status is correlated with poor clinical outcomes.MNA-SF can be used as a tool for evaluating the nutritional status of elderly patients with malignant tumor.