High prevalence of frailty in end-stage renal disease

Purpose Prognosis of the increasing number of elderly patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) is poor with high risk of functional decline and mortality. Frailty seems to be a good predictor for those patients that will not benefit from dialysis. Varying prevalences between populations are probably related to the instrument used. The aim of this study was to measure the prevalence of frailty among ESRD patients with two different validated instruments. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among patients, aged >= 18 years, receiving hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis and pre-dialysis care between September 2013 and December 2013 in a single dialysis center in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. Frailty was measured with the frailty index (FI) and frailty phenotype (FP). Results Prevalence of frailty by the FI was 36.8 % among 95 participants with ESRD (age: 65.2 years, SD +/- 12.0). Frailty prevalence among participants aged >= 65 and <65 years was 43.6 and 27.5 %, respectively. Female sex [odds ratio (OR) 3.3, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.3-8.0] and a Charlson comorbidity index score of >= 5 (OR 2.6, 95 % CI 1.0-6.6) were associated with frailty. The FI identified different but overlapping participants as frail compared with the FP; 62.5 % of frail participants according to FI were also frail according to the FP. Conclusions Prevalence of frailty among young and elderly ESRD patients is high; being female and having more comorbidity was associated with frailty. Use of a broader definition of frailty, like the FI, gives a higher estimation of prevalence among ESRD patients compared with a physical frailty assessment

Discriminative value of frailty screening instruments in end-stage renal disease

Background: Numerous frailty screening instruments are available, but their applicability for identifying frailty in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) is unknown. We aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of three instruments used for frailty screening in an ESRD population. Methods: The study was conducted in 2013 in a teaching hospital in The Netherlands and included patients receiving haemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis and pre-dialysis care. We determined the sensitivity and specificity of three screening instruments: the Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI), the Identification of Seniors at Risk-Hospitalized Patients (ISAR-HP) and the Veiligheidsmanagementsysteem (VMS), which is a safety management system for vulnerable elderly patients. The Frailty Index was the gold standard used. Results: The prevalence of frailty was 37% in a total of 95 participants with ESRD [mean age 65.2 years (SD 12.0), 57% male]. Frailty prevalence in participants ?65 years of age and <65 years of age was 44% and 28%, respectively (P = 0.11). Sensitivity and specificity for frailty of the GFI were 89% and 57%, respectively; ISAR-HP 83% and 77%, respectively; and VMS 77% and 67%, respectively. Conclusions: Although the GFI showed the highest sensitivity, it is not yet possible to propose a firm choice for one of these screening instruments or specific items due to the small scale of the study. Since there is a high prevalence of frailty in ESRD patients, translation and testing of the effectiveness of screening using the GFI in the prognostication and prevention of development or deterioration of frailty in this population should be the next step

Oral Nutrition as a Form of Pre-Operative Enhancement in Patients Undergoing Surgery for Colorectal Cancer:A Systematic Review

Background: Nutritional status has major impacts on the outcome of surgery, in particular in patients with cancer. The aim of this review was to assess the merit of oral pre-operative nutritional support as a part of prehabilitation in patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer. Methods: A systematic literature search and meta-analysis was performed according to the Preferred Reporting of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations in order to review all trials investigating the effect of oral pre-operative nutritional support in patients undergoing colorectal surgery. The primary outcome was overall complication rate. Secondary outcomes were incision infection rate, anastomotic leakage rate, and length of hospital stay. Results: Five randomized controlled trials and one controlled trial were included. The studies contained a total of 583 patients with an average age of 63y (range 23-88y), of whom 87% had colorectal cancer. Malnourishment rates ranged from 8%-68%. All investigators provided an oral protein supplement. Overall patient compliance rates ranged from 72%-100%. There was no significant reduction in the overall complication rate in the interventional groups (odds ratio 0.82; 95% confidence interval 0.52-1.25). Conclusion: Current studies are too heterogeneous to conclude that pre-operative oral nutritional support could enhance the condition of patients undergoing colorectal surgery. Patients at risk have a relatively lean body mass deficit (sarcopenia) rather than an absolute malnourished status. Compliance is an important element of prehabilitation. Targeting patients at risk, combining protein supplements with strength training, and defining standardized patient-related outcomes will be essential to obtain satisfactory result

Variation in diagnoses: Influence of specialists' training on selecting and ranking relevant information in geriatric case vignettes

Variation in aspects of medical practice such as diagnosis, has been studied at different levels of aggregation. At the inter-practitioner aggregation level, attention is increasingly being paid to factors explaining medical variation which are attributed to 'professional uncertainty'. The concept of 'professional uncertainty' refers to variability that is considered to be inherent to the nature and structure of medical knowledge which depend on the epistemological characteristics of medical science. In this study the relationship between specialty training and variation in diagnostic practice was examined at the inter-practitioner aggregation level. Determination of a direct relationship would support the thesis that specialization is a structuring factor in the inherent variability of medical practice. Three groups of medical specialists participated in the study: geriatricians, geriatric-psychiatrists and internists. Four case scenarios were submitted to the specialists. The cases used involved elderly patients presenting with problems in domains common to all the participating specialists. For each case the specialists were requested to select those facts they considered important for reaching diagnoses and to rank these facts in order of perceived salience. Subsequently they were asked to provide (tentative) diagnoses, ranked in order of perceived significance. The occurrence of variability in diagnostic practice due to 'professional uncertainty' and the influence of specialist specific factors and shared knowledge, respectively, are demonstrated. The results clearly show that these three groups of specialists focused on different elements of information, and formulated different diagnoses in the same case, but expressed similar ranking patterns.diagnostic variation clinical specialists elderly patients medical epistemology professional uncertainty

Oral Nutrition as a Form of Pre-Operative Enhancement in Patients Undergoing Surgery for Colorectal Cancer : A Systematic Review

Background: Nutritional status has major impacts on the outcome of surgery, in particular in patients with cancer. The aim of this review was to assess the merit of oral pre-operative nutritional support as a part of prehabilitation in patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer. Methods: A systematic literature search and meta-analysis was performed according to the Preferred Reporting of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations in order to review all trials investigating the effect of oral pre-operative nutritional support in patients undergoing colorectal surgery. The primary outcome was overall complication rate. Secondary outcomes were incision infection rate, anastomotic leakage rate, and length of hospital stay. Results: Five randomized controlled trials and one controlled trial were included. The studies contained a total of 583 patients with an average age of 63 y (range 23-88 y), of whom 87% had colorectal cancer. Malnourishment rates ranged from 8%-68%. All investigators provided an oral protein supplement. Overall patient compliance rates ranged from 72%-100%. There was no significant reduction in the overall complication rate in the interventional groups (odds ratio 0.82; 95% confidence interval 0.52 - 1.25). Conclusion: Current studies are too heterogeneous to conclude that pre-operative oral nutritional support could enhance the condition of patients undergoing colorectal surgery. Patients at risk have a relatively lean body mass deficit (sarcopenia) rather than an absolute malnourished status. Compliance is an important element of prehabilitation. Targeting patients at risk, combining protein supplements with strength training, and defining standardized patient-related outcomes will be essential to obtain satisfactory results