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. 2023 May 9:18:729-735.
doi: 10.2147/CIA.S408207. eCollection 2023.

Factors Associated with In-Hospital Mortality in Elderly Internal Medicine Patients with Nasogastric Tube Feeding

Galina Plotnikov  1   2 , Saleh Sharif  2   3 , Gleb Buturlin  2 , Inbal Segal  1 , Oleg Gorelik  2 , Nadya Kagansky  2   4
Affiliations

Factors Associated with In-Hospital Mortality in Elderly Internal Medicine Patients with Nasogastric Tube Feeding

Galina Plotnikov et al. Clin Interv Aging. .

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate demographic, clinical, and laboratory variables, and their associations with in-hospital mortality, among elderly internal medicine patients with nasogastric tube (NGT) feeding.

Patients and methods: Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were collected retrospectively for 129 patients aged ≥80 years who initiated NGT feeding during their hospitalization in internal medicine wards. The data were compared between survivors and non-survivors. Multivariate logistic regressions were performed to identify the variables most significantly associated with in-hospital mortality.

Results: The in-hospital mortality rate was 60.5%. Compared to survivors, non-survivors more often presented with pressure sores (P=0.005) and lymphopenia (P<0.001), were more often treated with invasive mechanical ventilation (P<0.001), and less often underwent geriatric assessment (P<0.001). Non-survivors demonstrated higher mean levels of C-reactive protein, and lower mean values of serum cholesterol, triglycerides, total protein, and albumin (P<0.001 for all comparisons). On multivariate analysis, the following variables were most significantly associated with in-hospital mortality in the entire cohort: the presence of pressure sores (odds ratio [OR], 4.34; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.68-11.48; P=0.003) and lymphopenia (OR, 4.09; 95% CI, 1.51-11.08; P=0.006), and serum cholesterol (OR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.96-0.99; P=0.003).

Conclusion: Among elderly acutely ill patients who initiated NGT feeding during hospitalization, in-hospital mortality was extremely high. The factors most strongly associated with in-hospital mortality were the presence of pressure sores and lymphopenia, and lower serum cholesterol levels. These findings may provide useful prognostic information for decision-making regarding initiation of NGT feeding in elderly hospitalized patients.

Keywords: aging; enteral feeding; hospitalization; prognosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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