Association between Nutritional Status and Prognosis of Trauma Patients Hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit

Abstract

Background: Trauma is one of the main causes of ICU hospitalization and mortality. Given that the majority of trauma patients are young and middle-aged, considering possible different nutritional patterns in middle-aged and young people compared to elderly people, this study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effects of malnutrition on the prognosis of these patients. Methods: This study was conducted on 103 trauma patients aged 40 to 65 years and 65 to 80 years admitted to the ICUs of Al-Zahra Hospital, Isfahan. The MNA-SF questionnaire was used to evaluate the nutritional status and the patients were divided into three groups: normal nutritional status, at risk of malnutrition and malnourished, and the duration of hospitalization, in-ICU mortality, need for mechanical ventilation, and duration of mechanical ventilation were compared between the groups. Findings: The results indicated that by controlling the effect of age, nutritional status (malnutrition compared to normal nutritional status) had a significant effect on increasing the duration of hospitalization (P = 0.001). In addition, the results showed that by controlling the effect of age, nutritional status did not have a significant effect on the need for mechanical ventilation, the duration of mechanical ventilation, or in-ICU mortality (P = 0.465, P = 0.752, and P = 0.309, respectively). Conclusion: In trauma patients, who are mainly young and middle-aged and active in society, attention to improving nutritional status, especially in malnourished patients, can help improve clinical outcomes and reduce hospitalization duration. © 2025, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved.