Author(s)

Selma F. C. Cunha^1*, Lidiane S. Tanaka², Roberta G. Salomão², Danielle M. Macedo², Thatiane D. Santos², Fernanda M. Peria³

¹Division of Clinical Nutrition, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil.
²Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition Team of Clinical Hospital, School of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil.
³Division of Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Brazil.

Background & Aims: We compared the screening nutritional data of patients with malignant and non-malignant disease, and classified their nutritional risk according to the primary tumor’s site. Methods: Subjective Global Assessment was applied to 3008 patients within 48 h of admission to a public university. Subjects were divided into Oncologic Group (n = 576) or Non-Oncologic Group (n = 2432) according to the presence of neoplasms or other diseases respectively. These data were compared by the t-student test and classic chi-square test, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Results: The Oncologic Group presented a higher prevalence of weight loss (60.3% vs. 49.3%), quantitative (40.7% vs. 28.5%) and qualitative (16.4% vs. 7.6%) alterations in the food intake pattern, gastrointestinal symptoms and muscle waste (23.2% vs. 13.2%) as compared to the Non-Oncologic Group. Also, there was a higher prevalence of nutritional disturbances in the Oncologic Group, with 49.5% of the subjects moderately (or suspected to be malnourished) and 12.7% severely mal-nourished. Severe malnourishment was mainly observed in patients with head and neck (25%), upper digestive tract (21.9%) and soft tissue and bones (17.9%) tumors. Conclusion: When compared to other hospitalized patients, patients with neoplastic disease were in higher nutritional risk.

Nutritional Screening, Malnutrition, Subjective Global Assessment, Hospital Setting, Neoplasia

Cunha, S. , Tanaka, L. , Salomão, R. , Macedo, D. , Santos, T. and Peria, F. (2015) Nutritional Screening in a University Hospital: Comparison between Oncologic and Non-Oncologic Patients. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 6, 75-82. doi: 10.4236/fns.2015.61009.