Judith Graham Hones in on Malnourishment in Seniors Admitted to the Emergency Room in New Old Age Bl
A recent study from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill based on a survey conducted at a North Carolina hospital suggests that a significant number of seniors admitted into emergency rooms may be suffering from malnourishment. The study, one of the first of its kind, seeks to document the extent of malnourishment in this demographic and was featured in The New Old Age Blog in the New York Times. Dr. Timothy Platts-Mills, one of Hartford's UNC-Chapel Hill Centers of Excellence Scholars and Hartford Change AGEnts who received one of the Centers of Excellence/Change AGEnts Collaborattive Pilot Awards, is one of the authors of the study.
A recent study from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill based on a survey conducted at a North Carolina hospital suggests that a significant number of seniors admitted into emergency rooms may be suffering from malnourishment. The study, one of the first of its kind, seeks to document the extent of malnourishment in this demographic and was featured in The New Old Age Blog in the New York Times. It was orginally published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Dr. Timothy Platts-Mills, one of Hartford's UNC-Chapel Hill Centers of Excellence Scholars and Hartford Change AGEnts who received one of the Centers of Excellence/Change AGEnts Collaborattive Pilot Awards, is one of the authors of the study. Of the sample of seniors surveyed in the study, 60 percent of the patients were either already malnourished or at the risk of becoming so.
“That was an eye-opener,” said Dr. Platts-Mills. “Malnutrition is a really serious, common issue and just nagging Grandma to eat more might not be an effective solution”
Factors linked to poor nutritional status included depression, difficulty eating, often due to dental problems, and problems affording or having transportation needed to buy groceries. Other studies have suggested additional contributing factors: social isolation ,cognitive difficulties, and medications that interfere with appetite or the absorption of nutrients.
Dr. Chris Carpenter, chairman of the geriatric section of the American College of Emergency Physicians and a Jahnigen Scholar, added: “Although we don’t know if the results extrapolate to all emergency departments, my guess is they probably come pretty close.”
The full article can be found at the New Old Age Blog.
For the complete findings of the study, head over to the Annals of Emergency Medicine website.