Anthropometric evaluation of an elderly patient group

Abstract

Introduction: Anthropometric measurements are useful for evaluating nutritional status, they are easy to obtain when applied to ambulatory elderly populations. Objective: to anthropometrically evaluate a group of older adults; For this, the variables: age, weight, height, waist circumference (CC), calf circumference (PP) were measured and BMI, ICT, IPCC and% GC were calculated. Methods: A group of older adults was selected, who attended the consultation in a private clinic, in the Caracas metropolitan area, during the months of June and October 2015. The indicators BMI, CC, PP, ICT, IPCC and% GC were determined. To classify, according to the categories of each, adults, and assess their nutritional status. Results: The results indicate age 71.9 ± 7.9 years, weight 67.1 ± 13.9, height 157.6 ± 9.2 cm, CC 93.7 ± 12.2, PP 33.7 ± 4.1, BMI 26.9 ± 4.7, ICT 0.60 ± 0.08, IPCC 0.71 ± 0.10 and% GC 40.4 ± 7.7. Malnutrition according to the PP 42.3% (M) and 15.6% (F); Overweight according to BMI 69.1% (M) and 62.9% (F); obesity 30.8% (M) and 37.1% (F). According to the CC, high risk and very high risk, 42.1% (M) and 20.6% (F), and 58.9% (M) and 77.4% (F), respectively. ICT reveals obesity 20.7% (M) and 62.2% (F); IPCC risk 78.2% (M) and 49.6% (F); % GC obesity 95.5% (M) and 98.3% (F). High correlations between CC-ICT, Weight-BMI, Weight-CC, Weight-IPCC (r ≥ 0.80 and p <0.001). Conclusion: the indicators are very useful to assess nutritional status, and having several of them, allows to complement the nutritional evaluation in the elderly.