Evaluation of nutritional risk on admission to the general surgery department

Abstract

Background: "Risk Screening 2002" screening index, advised by European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism in 2003, is gradually being used in surgery clinics.

Methods: "Nutritional Risk Screening 2002" was applied in order to evaluate the nutritional status of the patients administered to the department by the staff doctors of the clinic who were trained on standard nutritional education and the use of NRS-2002 between 15 June 2005 and 10 March 2006. The patients having "Nutritional Risk Screening 2002" score 3 were considered as nutritionally under risk.

Results: Totally 793 patients were evaluated in double blinded fashion. 75 patients were revealed as being under nutritional risk of whom 26 having benign and 49 having malign etiologies. 84 % of the patients with malignancy were under nutritional risk.

Conclusions: Patients, especially the ones having malignancy, admitted to the General Surgery departments, are under nutritional risk. NRS-2002 is a new method to evaluate nutritional risk which is easy to apply and clear to evaluate. It should be applied to all patients routinely during admittance and periodically as long as they stay at the hospital (Tab. 2, Ref. 17).