Sensitivity and specificity of malnutrition screening tools used in the adult hospitalized patient setting a systematic review

Mary E. Platek, Dorijn F L Hertroijs, Joseph M. Nicholson, Niyati Parekh

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Adult hospitalized patients are at risk for malnutrition. The sensitivity and specificity of screening tools were compared with Subjective Global Assessment. Methods included a systematic review using PubMed, CINAHL Plus, and EMBASE through April 2014. Study quality was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies method. The results showed that the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool, Nutrition Risk Screening-2002, and Malnutrition Screening Tool were most frequently tested. The specificity was generally good (>80%), but sensitivity was variable. Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool, Nutrition Risk Screening-2002, and Malnutrition Screening Tool are screening tools that consider population characteristics and risk cut points and are easy to administer. Key words: malnutrition, nutrition assessment, nutrition screening, sensitivity and specificity, subjective global assessment, undernutrition.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)289-301
Number of pages13
JournalTopics in Clinical Nutrition
Volume30
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 20 2015

Keywords

  • Malnutrition
  • Nutrition assessment
  • Nutrition screening
  • Sensitivity and specificity
  • Subjective global assessment
  • Undernutrition

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Nutrition and Dietetics

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