A Comprehensive Review of Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and Other Methods in the Assessment of Nutritional Status in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis

Abstract

It is assumed that approximately 24–66% of patients with liver cirrhosis develop malnutrition. Numerous pathological processes lead to serious disorders of nutritional status in this group of patients. Malnutrition in the course of liver cirrhosis is associated with increased morbidity, complications, and low quality of life. Under these conditions, detection of malnutrition is of crucial importance. This review explores the complex mechanisms that lead to malnutrition in the course of liver cirrhosis and focuses on methods used in the assessment of nutritional status in cirrhotic patients. Among others, the role of bioelectrical impedance is highlighted. This noninvasive tool is promising and quite an accurate method of estimating body composition.

Bioelectrical Impedance Phase Angle as an Indicator of Malnutrition in Hospitalized Children with Diagnosed Inflammatory Bowel Diseases—A Case Control Study

“…PhA score correlates with functional status. PhA is an important predictor of mortality [ 6 , 7 , 8 ], malnutrition in cancer [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ], liver cirrhosis [ 12 ], diabetes [ 13 , 14 ], psoriasis [ 15 ], in chronic kidney disease treated with hemodialysis [ 16 ] and in heart failure [ 17 ]. Hence, PhA can be regarded as a reliable prognostic marker and should be considered as a screening tool for the identification of patients at risk of impaired nutritional and functional status [ 2 , 18 ].…”

Exploring Barriers and Enablers to Dietitians Completing Body Composition Assessments as Part of Routine Clinical Care 

“…While many papers have promoted the use of BCA to detect malnutrition, 10,15,17,27,30,31 and speci c studies described the application of these techniques in clinical areas (e.g. elderly; 32 liver failure; [44][45][46] oncology; 47,48 renal disease; 49 and respiratory disease 26 ) none have applied this across a hospital dietetics department.…”

Ultrasonography evaluation of rectus femoris and anterior tibialis muscles for nutritional assessment in cirrhotic patients undergoing major abdominal surgery

“…The SGA is commonly used to assess nutrition in cirrhotic patients. However previous studies reported its low sensitivity, in the majority of patients with liver cirrhosis [6,7].…”