Nutritional care at centres managing patients with inflammatory bowel disease: A nationwide survey in Italy

Abstract

Background: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at risk of malnutrition, but little is known about how IBD centres provide nutritional care.

Aim: To assess how nutritional care is delivered at IBD centres across Italy.

Methods: 120 IBD centres were invited to answer a web-based questionnaire.

Results: 76 questionnaires (63.3%) were completed. An IBD-dedicated nutritionist is present in 27 centres (35.5%). Fifty-two centres (68.4%) have an IBD multidisciplinary team, and 22 of these include a nutritionist. In the outpatient setting, malnutrition risk is evaluated at each visit in 23 centres (30.3%), while nutritional status is assessed at each visit in 21 centres (27.6%). These assessments are performed by a gastroenterologist in almost all centres (93.4% and 88.2%, respectively) and more rarely by a nutritionist (32.9% and 36.9%), dietician (7.9% and 2.6%) or nurse (3.9% and 9.2%). The decision to offer oral nutritional support is made by a gastroenterologist alone (35.5%), a nutritionist alone (23.7%), or a team of the two (38.2%).

Conclusions: Nutritional care for IBD patients appears quite far from satisfactory in the Italian reality. Educational and structural interventions are urgently needed to improve assessment and treatment of malnutrition in everyday clinical practice.

Keywords: Inflammatory bowel disease; Malnutrition risk; Nutrition; Nutritional care.