To investigate the nutritional status of elderly patients with chronic cardiovascular disease during hospitalization and evaluate their correlation with clinical outcomes.

A prospective, parallel multicenter cross-sectional study was carried out in Beijing Hospital, The General Hospital of the People′s Liberation Army, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Tianjin Hospital of ITCWM, Nankai Hospital, Xijing Hospital, Air Force Medical University, the 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University from April 1st 2012 to May 31st 2012. Subjects in the study were inpatients aged 65 years and above with chronic cardiovascular disease. Anthropometric parameters and related laboratory indicators were collected. Short form mini nutritional assessment(MNA-SF) was used to assess the nutritional status. The in-hospital mortality and infection complications, hospitalization time and other clinical outcome indicators were recorded. Associations between nutritional status and clinical outcomes were further sought. Data were processed with chi-square test, analysis of variance, t test.

The study enrolled 2 093 elderly patients with chronic cardiovascular disease met the inclusion criteria. Among the 2 093 patients, their age were(75.2±6.9) years, their body mass index were (24.2±3.7) kg/m^2, their grip strength were (18.2±11.8) kg, their calf circumference were (26.6±3.5) cm, their albumin were (35.81±10.51) g/L, their total protein were (65.19±7.79) g/L, their prealbumin were (182.8±104.1) mg/L, their total glyceride were (1.46±1.12) mmol/L, their triglyceride were (4.16±1.49) mmol/L, their hemoglobin were (126.7±18.1) g/L. One thousand nine hundred and ninety three of them completed the MNA-SF, compliance 95.22%, 5.77%(115/1 993) were malnourished, 28.50% (568/1 993)were at risk of malnutrition. Among them, the incidence of malnutrition risk and malnutrition was higher in patients with chronic heart failure, cardiomyopathy, heart valve disease. And the total incidence of infection was 4.92%. The incidence of normal nutrition group was 3.36%, the malnutrition risk group was 6.51%, the malnutrition group was 14.78%, there were statistically significant differences(χ²=33.79, P<0.05). The total hospitalization time was(10.94±7.60) d, the normal nutrition group was (10.10±6.97) d, the malnutrition risk group was (12.25 ± 8.16) d, the malnutrition group (14.94±9.73) d, there were statistically significant differences (F=31.480, P<0.05).

Elderly patients with chronic cardiovascular disease have certain malnutrition risk and at risk of malnutrition. The correlation analysis between the MNA-SF evaluation results and the clinical outcome indicators showed that malnutrition risk and malnutrition were positively related to adverse clinical outcomes. Poor nutritional status is associated with worse clinical outcomes. The evaluation and intervention of their nutritional status during hospitalization shoud be payed attention to.