Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM) are exposed to malnutrition, due to dietary restrictions and associated conditions. However, in daily practice, malnutrition is often under-diagnosed among these patients.

Aim: To assess the risk of malnutrition in patients with DM admitted to an Endocrinology Department using the Nutritional Risk Index (NRI).

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study to calculate the NRI in patients with DM admitted to the Endocrinology department between March and September 2020. We used the formula NRI= (1.489×serum albumin) +41.7×(actual weight/usual weight). Patients were considered in no risk of malnutrition if NRI >100. Patients with NRI between 97.5-100 and 83.5-97.5 were considered in mild and moderate risk of malnutrition respectively. Patients with NRI less than 83.5 are in risk of severe malnutrition.

Results: In total, 106 patients with DM were admitted. Among them, 67 patients (63.2%) reported loss of weight, but in only 28 patients (26.4%), the maximal weight could be determined. The Mean weight upon admission was 70 +- 14.95 kg, the mean loss of weight was 12.07+-6.35 kg. The mean usual body weight was 82.09 +- 14.8 kg. The median NRI was 88.45 [80.2-89.14]. According to the NRI, 16 patients (57.1%) were considered in moderate risk while 11 patients (39.3%) were considered in the high risk group. Only one patient was considered in no risk of malnutrition.

Discussion and conclusion: Our results show the frequency of malnutrition among patients with DM. in fact, approximately two thirds (63.2%) of admitted patients with DM report loss of weight. Those with loss of weight were mostly in moderate or high risk of malnutrition. These results emphasize the need to incorporate assessment of nutritional status in diabetic patients in daily practice to prevent and manage malnutrition in a timely manner.