The Brazilian Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization recommend dietary counseling for patients with malnutrition during tuberculosis treatment. Patients under tuberculosis therapy (infected and not infected with HIV) were followed-up to evaluate the effectiveness of dietary counseling. Objective: describe the nutritional status of patients with tuberculosis. Methods: an observational follow-up study over a 180-day period of tuberculosis therapy in adults was conducted. Subjects were assessed for body composition (using BMI, TSF and MUAC parameters), serum biomarkers and offered dietary counseling. The data obtained at each visit (D15, D30, D60, D90, D120, D150, and D180) were analyzed, showing trajectories over time and central tendencies each time. Results: at baseline, the mean age was 41.1 (±13.4) years; they were predominantly male, with income lower than a local minimum wage and at least six years of schooling. Patients showed predominantly pulmonary tuberculosis. At baseline, all patients suffered from malnutrition. The overall energy malnutrition prevalence was of 70.6%. Anemia at baseline was observed in both groups (63.2%), however, it was significantly more pronounced in the HIV+. At the end, energy malnutrition was reduced to 57.1% (42.9% of HIV- and 71.4% of the HIV+). Micronutrients malnutrition was evident in 71.4% of the HIV- patients and 85.7% of HIV+ patients at the end of tuberculosis therapy. Using BMI (≤18.5 kg/m2cutoff) as an index of malnutrition, it was detected in 23.9% of the HIV- and 27.3% of the HIV+ patients at baseline, with no evident improvement over time; using TSF (≤11.4mm as cutoff) or MUAC (≤28.5cm as cutoff), malnutrition was detected in 70.1% and 85.3% of all patients, respectively. Nevertheless, combining all biomarkers, at the end of follow-up, all patients suffered from malnutrition. Conclusion: Although with a limited number of patients, the evidence does not support that dietary counseling is effective to recover from malnutrition in our population.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic hemoglobinopathy characterized by chronic hemolysis. Chronic hemolysis is promoted by increased oxidative stress. Our hypothesis was that some antioxidant micronutrients (retinol, tocopherol, selenium, and zinc) would be determinant factors of the degree of hemolysis in SCD patients. We aimed to investigate the nutritional adequacy of these antioxidants and their relationships to hemolysis. The study included 51 adult SCD patients regularly assisted in two reference centers for hematology in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Serum concentrations of retinol, alpha-tocopherol, selenium, and zinc were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography or atomic absorption spectrometry. Hematological parameters (complete blood count, reticulocyte count, hemoglobin, direct and indirect bilirubin, total bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase) and inflammation markers (leukocytes and ultra-sensitive C-reactive protein) were analyzed. A linear regression model was used to test the associations between the variables. Most patients presented selenium deficiency and low selenium consumption. Linear regression analysis showed that selenium is the main determinant of hemolysis among the antioxidant nutrients analyzed. Thus, data from this study suggest that the nutritional care protocols for patients with SCD should include dietary sources of selenium in order to reduce the risk of hemolysis.

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