Nutrition
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Malnutrition may be an important risk factor for orthostatic hypotension (OH). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between malnutrition and OH, and the effect of nutritional improvement on cognitive functions and gait-balance parameters in patients with OH. ⋯ Optimization of nutritional status may improve global cognition and gait-balance functions, and prevent falls in older people with OH.
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The incidence of malnutrition in developing countries, such as many of those located in Sub-Saharan Africa, is still high, especially in vulnerable categories such as women of childbearing age. Among the several factors influencing dietary intake and eating habits, evidence shows the importance of food knowledge (FK), essential in establishing and maintaining strategies aimed at reducing the burden of disease and promoting wellbeing. The present research was aimed at describing the methodology for designing a questionnaire to investigate Food Knowledge in Tanzania women of childbearing age. ⋯ The final version of the Tanzanian FKQ "to be validated" ended up consisting of five sections: Section A, about social and economic information (17 questions); Section B, related to health experts advice (5 questions); Section C1 and C2 about food groups (7+7 questions); Section D about diseases and nutrition (6 questions). The questionnaire includes 114 close-ended questions in total. The exploratory analyses performed have led to define the relationships between items and latent constructs, allowing to identify of "correct food knowledge" and "incorrect food knowledge" archetypals.
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Radboud University Medical Center introduced a new food service (NFS) to the hemodialysis (HD) department, which contains several small protein-rich foods and adheres to the Dutch dietary HD guidelines. The objectives were to investigate whether the NFS improves protein and energy intake compared with the old food service (OFS), the number of symptomatic hypotensive events (SHEs), and patient satisfaction. ⋯ NFS resulted in increased protein and energy intake and patient satisfaction, but no increase in SHEs was observed.
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Observational Study
Choice of access route for artificial nutrition in cancer patients: 30 y of activity in a home palliative care setting.
Malnutrition negatively affects the quality of life, survival, and clinical outcome of patients with cancer. Home artificial nutrition (HAN) is an appropriate nutritional therapy to prevent death from cachexia and to improve quality of life, and it can be integrated into a home palliative care program. The choice to start home enteral nutrition (HEN) or home parenteral nutrition (HPN) is based on patient-specific indications and contraindications. The aim of this observational study was to analyze the changes that occurred in the criteria for choosing the access route to artificial nutrition during 30 y of activity of a nutritional service team (NST) in a palliative home care setting, as well as to compare indications, clinical nutritional outcomes, and complications between HEN and HPN. ⋯ Over 30 y of nutritional service team activity, the choice of central venous catheters as an access route to HAN increased progressively and significantly due to personalized patient decision-making choices. Nutritional efficacy was comparable between HEN and HPN. In patients who maintained food oral intake, supplemental parenteral nutrition improved weight, performance status, and survival better than other types of HAN.
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We investigated the utility of nutrition scores in predicting mortality and prognostic importance of nutrition status using three different scoring systems in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). ⋯ Patients with low nutrition scores were at a higher risk of MACE and all-cause death than patients with high nutrition scores. Additionally, the GNRI had the greatest incremental value in predicting risks among the three different scoring systems used in this study.