Nutritional Assessment and Dietary Interventions in Older Patients with Heart Failure

AbstractPurpose of ReviewOlder patients with heart failure (HF) are challenging to manage due to the high prevalence of frailty, polypharmacy, cognitive impairment, and other geriatric conditions. Malnutrition and poor dietary habits are also common and strongly predict adverse outcomes in older patients with HF. Current dietary recommendations for HF primarily advise reducing sodium intake, but randomized studies suggest that excess restriction can lead to adverse outcomes. The optimal dietary pattern, caloric intake, advice for weight management, and strategies for self-care in this population have not been determined.Recent FindingsScreening tools for malnutrition, including the Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index and Mini Nutritional Assessment, can be used to assess nutritional risk and predict mortality, hospitalization, and functional decline in older patients with HF. The ideal dietary pattern for patients with HF has not been determined, though epidemiologic and observational cohort studies suggest that the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and Mediterranean dietary patterns are reasonable to recommend to many patients. Recent dietary intervention studies highlight the importance of individualized nutritional counseling interventions, maintaining adequate nutritional intake during sodium restriction, and the potential for caloric restriction to improve outcomes in some patients.SummaryNutritional status and dietary intake are prognostically important and po...
Source: Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports - Category: Cardiology Source Type: research