Nutritional Status and Its Associated Factors in Elderly With Diabetes, 2015

Objectives Malnutrition is a clinical disorder and a common risk factor in older patients with diabetes that may impact their health. This study aimed to assess nutritional status and associated factors in elderly with diabetes in Kerman City, Iran. Methods & Materials This was a cross-sectional study conducted in Kerman in which 190 older patients with diabetes were included. Their nutritional habit was measured using the MNA. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics and correlation among variables, analyzed by the Chi Square, T-test, and One Way ANOVA. Results The findings showed that 5.3% of elderly patients were suffering from malnutrition, and in 51.6% nutritional status was normal. Also, there was a statistically significant association between nutritional status and gender (P=0.036). There was a significant negative relationship between duration of diabetes and nutritional status in the elderly (r=0.192, P=0.008). Conclusion It is necessary to maintain and improve the status of elderly diabetic patients with malnutrition by administering normal nutritional status and special attention.