Tímarit hjúkrunarfræðinga - 2024, Page 80

78 Tímarit hjúkrunarfræðinga | 2. tbl. 100. árg. 2024
Nutritional status of community dwelling older adults in Akureyri and surroundings
ENGLISH SUMMARY
Nutritional status of community dwelling older adults
in Akureyri and surroundings
Asgrimsdottir, S., Sigurdardottir, A. K., Blondal, B. S., Hrolfsdottir, L.
ABSRTAKT
Background
The number of older adults will increase rapidly over the next
few decades if population projections are accurate. With a higher
proportion of older adults in the population, it can be expected that
the workload in the healthcare system will increase. The nutritional
status of community dwelling older adults is an understudied
field, but the importance of meeting the nutritional needs of this
vulnerable group may potentially lead to an improved quality of
life, lower the need for services, decrease hospitalisations, shorten
hospital stays, and prevent premature nursing home admission.
Aim
To determine the nutritional status of community dwelling older
adults in Akureyri who received home care nursing from the North
Iceland Healthcare Institute (HSN).
Method
This was a cross-sectional study. The home care nursing at HSN
screened their community dwelling clients (n=193), ≥ 65 years, living
in Akureyri and its surroundings in March 2022 using the screening
tool "Assessment of risk for malnutrition" found in Medical Records.
The screening gives the clients points (0-30) depending on the
degree of risk of malnutrition, where more points describe a higher
risk. The screening requires height and weight measurements,
checking weight history for weight loss, and answering questions
about, e.g., nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, difficulty swallowing
or chewing, recent hospitalisation and surgery. At the end of the
questionnaire, the screening tool provided points based on the
client’s answers.
Results
The median age was 84 years (IQR:10), the median weight was 79
kg (IQR:24), and the median body mass index (BMI (kg/m2) 27.5
(IQR:7.5). Overall, 4% of the subjects had a BMI <18.5 and 35%
had a BMI ≥30. Participants at risk of malnutrition (3-4 points)
were 31.1%, and 5.2% had a high risk of malnutrition (≥5 points).
Involuntary recent weight loss, persistently poor appetite or
nausea, and recent hospitalisation were the most prevalent risk
factors among participants at risk of malnutrition (≥3 points).
Conclusions
The results of this study showed that 36% (n=70) of older community
dwelling adults in Akureyri who received formal care from nursing
staff were at risk or at high risk of being malnourished. Preventive
and interventional measures are needed to promote adequate
nutritional intake in older adults living independently.
Keywords
Older adults, nutritional status, community dwelling,
cross-sectional study, screening.
Correspondent
sas0322@sak.is