Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of the study population
| Item | Total (n = 184) |
|---|---|
| Age, yrs. (mean ± SD) | 78.8 ± 10.8 |
| Gender, n (%) | |
| Male | 103 (56%) |
| Female | 81 (44%) |
| Height, cm (mean ± SD) | 154.9 ± 11.4 |
| Weight, kg (mean ± SD) | 46.9 ± 12.2 |
| BMI, kg/m2 (mean ± SD) | 19.9 ± 4.0 |
| Household status, n (%) | |
| Alone | 22 (12%) |
| Not alone | 162 (88%) |
| Marital status, n (%) | |
| Married | 105 (57.7%) |
| Widow/widower | 60 (32.6%) |
| Divorced | 6 (3.3%) |
| Single | 11 (6.0%) |
| Economic status, n (%) | |
| With financial support | 29 (15.8%) |
| Self-supporting | 118 (64.5%) |
| Well-off | 36 (19.7%) |
| Visual acuity, n (%) | |
| Not impaired | 144 (78.3%) |
| Impaired | 40 (21.7%) |
| Hearing ability, n (%) | |
| Not impaired | 153 (83.2%) |
| Impaired | 31 (16.8%) |
| Communication, n (%) | |
| Not impaired | 28 (15.6%) |
| Impaired | 152 (84.4%) |
| CCI, scores (mean ± SD) | 3.0 ± 2.3 |
| Polypharmacy (≥6 medications), n (%) | |
| No | 178 (48.5%) |
| Yes | 189 (51.5%) |
| Independence scale of the disabled elderly, n (%) | |
| Independence | 16 (9.1%) |
| Pre-bedridden status | 53 (30.3%) |
| Bedridden status | 106 (60.6%) |
| Barthel index, score (mean ± SD) | 48.5 ± 33.7 |
| Bedsores, n (%) | |
| No | 162 (88.5%) |
| Yes | 21 (11.5%) |
| Denture use | |
| No | 62 (36.7%) |
| Yes | 106 (63.3%) |
| Feeding intake form | |
| Oral form | 130 (83.9%) |
| Oral form plus tube feeding | 11 (7.1%) |
| Tube feeding | 14 (9.0%) |
| Dysphagia Severity Scale, n (%) | |
| No dysphagia | 143 (77.7%) |
| With dysphagia | 41 (22.3%) |
| MNA-SF, scores (mean ± SD) | 8.1 ± 3.0 |
| Malnourished, n (%) | 77 (44.3%) |
| At risk of malnutrition, n (%) | 79 (45.4%) |
| Normal nutritional status, n (%) | 18 (10.3%) |
| Serum albumin level, g/dL (mean ± SD) | 3.5 ± 0.5 |