The German hospital malnutrition study
Abstract
Background & aims Malnutrition is frequently observed in chronic and severe diseases and associated with impaired outcome. In Germany general data on prevalence and impact of hospital malnutrition are missing.Methods Nutritional state was assessed by subjective global assessment (SGA) and by anthropometric measurements in 1,886 consecutively admitted patients in 13 hospitals (n=1,073, university hospitals; n=813, community or teaching hospitals). Risk factors for malnutrition and the impact of nutritional status on length of hospital stay were analyzed.Results Malnutrition was diagnosed in 27.4% of patients according to SGA. A low arm muscle area and arm fat area were observed in 11.3% and 17.1%, respectively. Forty-three % of patients 70 years old were malnourished compared to only 7.8% of patients <30 years. The highest prevalence of malnutrition was observed in geriatric (56.2%), oncology (37.6%), and gastroenterology (32.6%) departments. Multivariate analysis revealed three independent risk factors: higher age, polypharmacy, and malignant disease (all P<0.01). Malnutrition was associated with an 43% increase of hospital stay (P<0.001).Conclusions In German hospitals every fourth patient is malnourished. Malnutrition is associated with increased length of hospital stay. Higher age, malignant disease and major comorbidity were found to be the main contributors to malnutrition. Adequate nutritional support should be initiated in order to optimize the clinical outcome of these patients.
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Undernutrition has been linked to negative impacts on morbidity, hospital stay duration, quality of life, health care costs, and mortality.
“Undernutrition has been linked to negative impacts on morbidity, hospital stay duration, quality of life, health care costs, and mortality [16,20,21,22,23].”
From The Utility of Body Composition Assessment in Nutrition and Clinical Practice: An Overview of Current Methodology (2021) · cites this paper as [20]
At least one-third of admitted adult patients are malnourished.
“The prevalence of undernutrition among older adults, patients with various chronic diseases, and hospitalized patients has continued to increase over time, with at least one-third of admitted adult patients being malnourished [16,17,20,21,22,23].”
From The Utility of Body Composition Assessment in Nutrition and Clinical Practice: An Overview of Current Methodology (2021) · cites this paper as [20]
Malnutrition in elderly patients undergoing rehabilitation is a prevalent and often neglected problem associated with lower rehabilitation effect and lower physical function.
“Malnutrition in elderly patients undergoing rehabilitation is a prevalent and often neglected problem associated with lower rehabilitation effect and lower physical function (Pirlich et al. 2006).”
From Advanced Sensing and Human Activity Recognition in Early Intervention and Rehabilitation of Elderly People (2020) · cites this paper as Pirlich et al. 2006
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- Authors
- Pirlich, M., Schütz, T., Norman, K., Gastell, S., Lübke, H. J., Bischoff, S. C., Bolder, U., Frieling, T., Güldenzoph, H., Hahn, K., Jauch, K.-W., Schindler, K., Stein, J., Volkert, D., Weimann, A., Werner, H., Wolf, C., Zürcher, G., Bauer, P., & Lochs, H.
- Affiliations
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (DE)
- Helios Klinikum Emil von Behring (DE)
- Medizinische Hochschule Hannover (DE)
- University Hospital Regensburg (DE)
- Vienna General Hospital (AT)
- University Hospital Frankfurt (DE)
- University of Bonn (DE)
- Klinikum St. Georg (DE)
- University Medical Center Freiburg (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Pirlich, Matthias
- ORCID
- Venue
- Clinical Nutrition
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2006-08
- Volume
- 25
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 563-572
- ISSN
- 0261-5614 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2107826281
- Cited by
- 720
- References
- 32
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 30 · 2024: 25 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 36 · 2021: 41 · 2020: 38 · 2019: 41 · 2018: 32 · 2017: 48 · 2016: 34 · 2015: 47 · 2014: 53 · 2013: 43 · 2012: 46
- FWCI
- 16.35
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- University of Regensburg Publication Server (University of Regensburg) (acceptedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nutrition and Health in Aging
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Clinical Nutrition and Gastroenterology
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
- Keywords
- hospital malnutrition, malnutrition prevalence, length of hospital stay, risk factors for malnutrition, Subjective Global Assessment, arm muscle area, arm fat area, polypharmacy, elderly patients, cancer patients, gastroenterology patients, nutritional support, older adults, comorbidities
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Anthropometry, Female, Gastrointestinal Diseases, Germany, Hospitalization, Humans, Length of Stay, Male, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Nutritional Status, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Severity of Illness Index, Nutrition Assessment, Body Mass Index, Prevalence, Multivariate Analysis, Malnutrition
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