Nutritional screening of older home-dwelling Norwegians: a comparison between two instruments

Abstract

Background: It is important to obtain knowledge about the prevalence of nutritional risk and associated factors among older home-dwelling people in order to be able to meet nutritional chal- lenges in this group in the future and to plan appropriate interventions. The aim of this survey was to investigate the prevalence of home-dwelling older people at nutritional risk and to identify asso- ciated factors using two different nutritional screening instruments as self-report instruments. Methods: This study had a cross-sectional design. A postal questionnaire, including the Norwegian versions of the Nutritional Form for the Elderly (NUFFE-NO) and Mini Nutritional Assessment – Short Form (MNA-SF), background variables, and health-related questions was sent to a randomized sample of 6033 home-dwelling older people in southern Norway. A total of 2106 (34.9%) subjects were included in the study. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses. Results: When using the NUFFE-NO and MNA-SF, 426 (22.3%) and 258 (13.5%) older persons, respectively, were identified to be at nutritional risk. The risk of undernutrition increased with age. Several predictors for being at risk of undernutrition, including chronic disease/handicap and receiving family help, as well as protective factors, including sufficient food intake and having social contacts, were identified. Conclusion: Health professionals must be aware of older people’s vulnerability to risk of under- nutrition, perform screening, and have a plan for preventing undernutrition. For that purpose, MNA-SF and NUFFE-NO can be suggested for screening older people living at home. Keywords: aged, risk factors, undernutrition, screening