• H P Wang, J Liang, L M Kuo, C Y Chen, and Y I L Shyu.
• Yea-Ing L. Shyu, Ph.D., School of Nursing, Chang Gung University, 259 Wenhua 1st Road, Guishan District, Taoyuan City 33302, Taiwan. Telephone: +886 3 211 8800 Ext. 5275, Fax: +886 3 211 8400, E-mail: yeaing@mail.cgu.edu.tw.
• J Nutr Health Aging. 2017 Jan 1; 21 (1): 38-45.

ObjectiveThis paper describes the trajectories of nutritional status and cognitive impairment and their correlation among older Taiwanese over 1 year after hip-fracture surgery.DesignSecondary analysis of data from a clinical trial evaluating the effects of three types of post-discharge care for 292 older hip-fracture patients (age >60 years).MeasurementsNutritional status was assessed by the Mini Nutritional Assessment before and 1, 3, 6, 12 months after hospital discharge. Cognitive function was measured by the Mini-Mental State Examination before surgery, at hospital discharge, 6 and 12 months after discharge. Trajectories of nutritional status and cognitive impairment were depicted by latent class growth modeling, whereas linkages between nutritional-status and cognitive-impairment trajectories were assessed by multinomial logistic regression.ResultsNutritional status in general improved significantly, particularly during the first 3 months after discharge. We identified three trajectories of nutritional status: malnourished (15.4%), at risk for malnutrition (38.9%), and well-nourished (45.7%). In contrast, cognitive changes followed four largely linear but distinct trajectories: moderately impaired (12.2%), mildly impaired (27.8%), borderline impaired (21.8%), and cognitively intact (38.2%). Trajectories of nutritional status were significantly associated with cognitive-function trajectories. For instance, relative to malnourished patients, well-nourished patients were 95% less likely (OR=0.05, CI =0.01-0.24) to be moderately cognitively impaired.ConclusionA good nutritional-status trajectory after hip fracture was associated with better cognitive function. To treat and care for elderly hip-fractured patients, specific interventions need to target those who are malnourished or at risk of malnutrition to decrease their risk for cognitive impairment.

22 keywords...

hide…