Nutrition Screening and Assessment Quiz: Test Your Knowledge

Study Notes

Nutrition Screening and Assessment

MNA (Mini Nutritional Assessment) is the most well-validated nutrition screening tool for the elderly, developed nearly 20 years ago.
The current MNA consists of 6 questions, streamlining the screening process while retaining its validity and accuracy in identifying malnourished or at-risk older adults.

Subjective Global Assessment (SGA)

SGA is a semiquantitative tool to assess nutritional status based on history and physical examination.
It is simple, noninvasive, inexpensive, and quickly executable, and can be performed bedside by any skilled and trained healthcare professional.
SGA categorizes nutritional status into three categories: well-nourished (A), mild to moderately malnourished (B), and severely malnourished (C).

Briefer Screening Methods

Briefer screening methods may use just two or three variables, such as the Nutrition Risk Index, which evaluates weight loss and serum albumin levels to determine malnutrition risk.

Nutrition Assessment

A nutrition assessment provides the information needed for diagnosing nutrition problems and designing a nutrition care plan.
It should be sensitive enough to detect subtle nutrition problems and specific enough to identify problem nutrients.
A well-conducted assessment allows the dietitian to devise a plan of action to prevent or correct nutrient imbalances.

Historical Information

Historical information provides clues about the patient's nutrition status and nutrient needs, and uncovers personal preferences that need to be considered when developing a nutrition care plan.
This information can be obtained from medical, personal, social, and food/nutrition histories.

Nutrition Screening

Nutrition screening is a brief assessment of health-related variables to identify patients who are malnourished or at risk for malnutrition.
It is conducted within 24 hours of a patient's admission to a hospital or other extended-care facility, and may also be included in outpatient services and community health programs.
The screening should be completed within 10 to 15 minutes and can be performed by a nurse, nursing assistant, registered dietitian, or dietetic technician.

Description

This quiz covers the brief assessment of health-related variables to identify malnourished patients or those at risk for malnutrition. Topics include nutrition screening, identifying protein-energy malnutrition (PEM), and conducting assessments in various healthcare settings.