[Nutrition management based on urine collection in patients under home care]

We calculate the salt intake, the protein intake and the % creatinine generation rate, the index for the muscle volume/exercise, based on the sodium, urea and creatinine level in the urine in patients under home care and retain the data in the database. To date, 45 patients under home care have been enrolled. The mean age is 70.9 years (+/- 13.8, SD). The underlying disease treated under home care include malignant tumor in 23 patients (51.1%), cerebrovascular disorders in 11 patients (24.4%), neurological/muscular disorders in 6 patients (13.3%) and other diseases in 5 patients (11.1%). The analysis of the data obtained from the collected urine has revealed that the % creatinine generation rate was significantly low in the patients with neurological/muscular disorders and that the % creatinine generation rate, the protein intake and the salt intake were high in the patients under the central venous nutrition. The analysis has also revealed that the % creatinine generation rate and the protein intake were lower in the patients who are less independent in daily lives. These findings substantiate that the 24-hour urine collection is useful for the assessment of nutritional condition in patients under home care.