Rationale: Most COVID-19 ICU patients have a highter risk of malnutrition and sarcopenia. Evaluation of strength and adequation of nutritional support are essential for these patients recovery.
Methods: For the data collection we used an online survey, with four identification questions, profession, age, years after graduation and if they are intensivists. And another four questions about the evaluation of the nutritional state of the Covid-19 ICU patients, asking how they evaluate the nutritional risk, the progression of nutritional therapy, the lean mass loss and the strength. Then the collected answers were tabulated and analyzed on Microsoft Excel.
Results: 88 professionals answered the questionnaire, 61 of them are medical doctors, 24 nutritionists and 3 nurses. The age ranged from 26 to 62, with the mean of 38,7. 15 of the physicians were intensivists. The mean years after graduation were 12,3, ranging from zero to 43. In the second group of questions we have many different answers, in the first 43 (48%) evaluate the nutritional risk, only three citing valid methods, 43 (48%) evaluate the progression of nutritional therapy, only two with concordant answers, 31 (35%) evaluate the lean mass loss, with five concordant answers, and 26 (29%) evaluate the strength on the ICU discharge, four of these with concordant answers.
Conclusion: We can see that the nutritional therapy on COVID-19 patients on ICU are poorly evaluated, less than half of the professionals that answered the questionnaire evaluate the nutritional risk with even less professionals evaluating the lean mass loss. Even nutritional therapy support being an essential part of the treatment.
References:
Thibault, R., Seguin, P., Tamion, F. et al. Nutrition of the COVID-19 patient in the intensive care unit (ICU): a practical guidance. Crit Care 24, 447 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-020-03159-z
Disclosure of Interest: None declared.
LB-051