Caracterización nutricional y funcional de adultos mayores de una comunidad marginal de Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Abstract

Introduction: Aging is a process that evidence nutritional and functional changes, which influence on the development of chronic diseases or functional dependence. The early detection of this changes will reduce the prevalence of morbidity and mortality in older adults. Objective: Determine the nutritional and functional status of older adults in a marginal urban location in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional descriptive study carried out in a Community Health Center, of a sample made up of 112 older adults. A structured questionnaire that included the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) was used to identify the risk of malnutrition, and the Barthel index, to measure functional capacity. A physical evaluation was performed where anthropometric parameters and body composition were assessed. The statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 22.0. Results: The mean age was 70,6 ± 8,6 years, the most frequent chronic disease was hypertension in 68,75%. The 46,4% were overweight and the MNA results show that 40,2% had a risk of malnutrition and 56,30% had some degree of functional dependence. Conclusions: Older adults who attend the Community Health Center in Guayaquil present nutritional risks and a body composition characterized by increased of fat mass and decreased of lean mass and functional dependency problems, so screening is a relevant criterion for disease prevention own of the age.