Nutritional Status of Lebanese Hospitalized Patients With Chronic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: In a hospitalized setting, malnutrition is known to increase patient’s mortality and lower the quality of life; therefore, it is essential to detect such cases and intervene at the earliest possible. The goal of this study is to estimate the rate of malnutrition in hospitalized Lebanese patients, explore its association with different factors, and create a simple tool to detect patients at high risk of malnutrition. Methods: One hundred and fifty Lebanese hospitalized patients, suffering at least from one chronic disease, were randomly chosen from Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Notre Dame de Secours (CHU-NDS) hospital. The Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) score was used to assess nutritional status. Results: A total of 34.7% of patients in our sample were at risk of malnutrition and 9.3% were malnourished. A higher risk of malnutrition was found in patients with a low body mass index, who were physically inactive or admitted to the hospital more than once in the past 6 months. The nutritional status was not associated with certain chronic diseases more than others. We designed a simple decision tree model based only on 3 questions to detect patients at high risk of malnutrition/malnourished. This tool has a sensitivity of 62% and a specificity of 77%. Conclusion: The prevalence found in our study was comparable with previous data. However, factors associated with poor nutritional status were somewhat different. Further studies are needed to validate our screening tool and to examine the effect of specific diseases on malnutrition on a larger scale.

COVID-19, economic crisis, and food insecurity worsen the double burden of malnutrition in Lebanon

“…Malnutrition is attributed to individual lifestyle behavior, socio-demographic characteristics, and economic, physiological, and pathological factors ( 35 ). In Lebanon, Mitri et al ( 36 ) reported that among older adults aged 65 years and above, women were significantly more at risk for malnutrition than men.…”

“…Surprisingly, oral health in adults, mainly older individuals, can affect their nutrition and may put them at risk of poor nutrition when dentures cannot cover their nutritional needs ( 36 ). Furthermore, depression and BMI are among the socio-demographic variables that are significantly associated with a greater risk of malnutrition among Lebanese older adults ( 35 ). For school-age children, malnutrition was mainly associated with age, time spent on electronic devices, skipping meals, and inadequate intake of nutrients ( 37 ).…”

“…This age group is expected to account for 10.2% of the total population in 2025, according to projections ( 39 ). Moreover, Choueiry et al ( 35 ) reported that since 2008, there has been no update on the nutritional status of hospitalized Lebanese patients; the nutritional survey of rural older adults was recently targeted in 2013 ( 36 ), and not enough data for vitamin A deficiency among Lebanese population has been published ( 21 ).…”

Analysis of predictors of malnutrition in adult hospitalized patients: social determinants and food security

“…Lebanon is a small country in the Middle East Region that is divided into five main districts with an estimated population of 6,847,712 and 144 hospitals comprising 11,742 beds ( 20 , 21 ). Studies on the prevalence of malnutrition in hospitalized patients have been modest with a small study reporting a rate of 37.4% in one hospital ( 22 ). The country has recently witnessed a severe financial crisis.…”

“Assessment of Malnutrition Care Practices and Knowledge in Lebanese Hospitals". (c2020)

“…In 2019, et al aimed to estimate the nutritional risk status of 150 Lebanese hospitalized patients from Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Notre Dame de Secours (CHU-NDS) hospital using the Mini Nutritional Assessment MNA tool. Results showed that 34.7% of the screened patients were at risk of malnutrition and 9.3% were malnourished (Choueiry et al, 2019).…”