Evaluation of studies of nutritional support team: 2 years' experience

Introduction

Nutritional screening and nutritional support have an important role to prevent malnutrition, which affects the prognosis and increases the morbidity and mortality of patients. We aimed to assess the patients who are consulted and followed by the nutritional support team during a 2-year period retrospectively.

Methods

Demographic characteristics, subjective global assessment scores (SGA) of patients' type, route, duration of nutritional support and complications were assessed.

Results

A total of 379 patients were consulted during the 2-year period. Two hundred and two of them (53.3%) were male and 177 (46.7%) were female and the mean value of ages was 63.5 ± 17.9 years (7 to 96 years, minimum to maximum). SGA scores were A in 35.1% (n = 133), B in 26.6% (n = 101), and C in 38.3% (n = 145). In 31.9% (n = 121) of the patients combined parenteral and enteral, in 29.6% (n = 112) only parenteral, in 25.6% (n = 97) only enteral and in 12.9% (n = 49) oral nutritional support were administered. Combined parenteral and enteral nutritional support was applied via nasogastric tube and peripheral parenteral in 54.5% (n = 66), nasogastric tube and santral parenteral in 29.8% (n = 36), oral and santral in 5.8% (n = 7), oral and peripheral parenteral in 6.6% (n = 8), nasojejunal and peripheral parenteral in 1.7% (n = 2) and gastrostomy and peripheral parenteral in 21.7% (n = 2). Parenteral nutritional support was applied via peripheral route in 62.5% (n = 70) and santral route in 37.5% (n = 42). Enteral nutrition was commonly applied by nasogastric tube in 87.6% (n = 85) and gastrostomy tube in 10.3% (n = 10). Nutritional support was applied during 18.2 ± 23.7 days (1 to 306 days). The most common complications were constipation (7.4%), nasogastric tube displacement or obstruction (5.2%), diarrhea (2.6%), thrombophlebitis (3.4%), aspiration (1.8%) and hyperglycemia (1.6%).

Conclusions

Nutritional screening should be a component of physical examination in hospital and outpatients.