The Role of Nutritional Status in Elderly Patients with Heart Failure

M. Wleklik, Izabella Uchmanowicz, B. Jankowska-Polańska, C. Andreae, B. Regulska-Ilow

Evidence indicates that malnutrition very frequently co-occurs with chronic heart failure (HF) and leads to a range of negative consequences. Studies show associations between malnutrition and wound healing disorders, an increased rate of postoperative complications, and mortality. In addition, considering the increasing age of patients with HF, a specific approach to their treatment is required. Guidelines proposed by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) for treating acute and chronic HF refer to the need to monitor and prevent malnutrition in HF patients. However, the guidelines feature no strict nutritional recommendations for HF patients, who are at high nutritional risk as a group, nor do they offer any such recommendations for the poor nutritional status subgroup, for which high morbidity and mortality rates have been observed. In the context of multidisciplinary healthcare, recommended by the ESC and proven by research to offer multifaceted benefits, nutritional status should be systematically assessed in HF patients. Malnutrition has become a challenge within healthcare systems and day-to-day clinical practice, especially in developed countries, where it affects the course of disease and patients' prognosis.