Research led by first and second authors Aaron C. Viser, Adelaide R. Cooke, and corresponding author Anne F. Peery, MD, associate professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, reveals how a screening tool can measure the prevalence of malnutrition among patients at the UNC Multidisciplinary Inflammatory Bowel Disease Clinic.
Eating food and absorbing its nutrients is an everyday occurrence, but this normal activity can look different for someone who suffers from inflammatory bowel disease. IBD, which includes Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, can cause chronic inflammation of the digestive tract – which for many reasons can lead to malnutrition. This malnourished state is associated with an increased risk of morbidity and mortality, and new findings show that many patients in IBD clinic screen positive for malnutrition, leading to the critical need for same-day dietitian support in the IBD clinic.
The study, published in Gastro Hep Advances, led by first and second authors Aaron C. Viser and Adelaide R. Cooke, used a validated and reliable malnutrition screening tool to screen patients in-person during their visit to UNC’s Multidisciplinary Inflammatory Bowel Disease Clinic in Chapel Hill, NC. Between June 7, 2022 and July 19, 2022, 237 IBD patients were screened. Results showed 14% of those patients were at high risk for malnutrition. The prevalence of a positive screen was 15% among patients with Crohn’s disease and 12% among patients with ulcerative colitis.
“It was important to do this study because we have limited time with our patients and often many problems to address,” said Anne F. Peery, MD, corresponding author and associate professor of medicine at the UNC School of Medicine. “It’s easy to miss malnutrition in the clinic setting.”