Abstract

Author(s): Palmeira dos Santos, Tatiana Maria1; Melo de Araújo, Andreza1; Barbosa Albuquerque dos Santos, Cynthia1; Almeida Sena, Danielle1; Da Costa, Dayanne2; Da Conceição Lacerdas, Doriane2; Dos Santos Júnior, José Alfredo3; Thamires Campos Silva, Nathália1

Introduction: The incidence of malnutrition in hospitalized patients is a public health problem. But malnutrition is not the only problem encountered in the hospital setting, where obesity is now considered a public health problem, as worrying as malnutrition.

Objective: To evaluate the nutritional status of hospitalized patients correlating the presence of anemia the objective and subjective methods of nutritional assessment.

Methods: Cross-sectional study performed with adult and elderly patients in a public hospital in Aracaju-SE. We collected anthropometric data (objective and subjective methods) and biochemical (hemoglobin).

Results: Participants were 149 patients, of whom 57% were male with an average age of 48.88 ± 17.89. 124 patients (83.2%) were anemic and anemia correlated to the length of stay. Subjective methods were more accurate for diagnosing malnutrition in adults (ASG) and the elderly (MAN) in relation to the objective methods.

Conclusion: The longer the time of hospitalization greater nutritional risk and more likely to develop anemia. It is hoped that the findings of this study may contribute to enhance the nutritional care provided to hospitalized patients to prevent the onset or worsening of malnutrition and anemia, internments and increased hospital expense.