[Validation of global nutrition assessment in elders]

The Chilean Ministry of Health proposed the use of "Mini Nutritional Assessment", to identify elders at nutritional risk. This score considers anthropometric, dietary and quality of life items.

To assess the concordance of the mini nutritional assessment with body mass index and dietary parameters in Chilean free living elders.

Subjects aged 70 years old or more, coming from four public outpatient clinics were studied. In all, the mini nutritional assessment, dietary intake using 24 h recalls and anthropometric parameters, were measured. Energy intake was evaluated using FAO/WHO/UNU guidelines. Micronutrient intake was evaluated using the Dietary Recommended Intakes (DRI) from USA. Kappa index was used to determine diagnostic concordance.

Forty three percent of subjects were overweight or obese. There was a substandard intake of calcium, folate, zinc, vitamin A, C, E, B6, B12 and energy. Seventy nine percent of subjects had a deficient or regular food intake. Mini nutritional assessment score was normal in 66% of subjects. Fifty eight percent of those with a deficient food intake had a normal mini nutritional assessment. On the other hand, 73% of those considered at nutritional risk, had a normal or excessive weight.

Mini nutritional assessment did not identify elders at nutritional risk in this sample.