[Malnutrition among the elderly admitted as emergencies to an internal medicine department. A pilot study]

All elderly persons aged 68 years or more (N = 104) who were admitted consecutively to a medical department at Ullevål Hospital in the city of Oslo during a period of six weeks were studied for nutritional status: measurements were taken of arm muscle circumference, skin fold thickness, concentration of albumin, zinc, phosphate and magnesium in the serum, and of folic acid in whole blood. Height and weight were measured, and atrophy of the tongue epithelium evaluated. Arm muscle circumference was reduced in 30 persons, skin fold thickness in 20, and serum concentration of albumin to 30 g/l or below in 30. Folic acid in whole blood was reduced in 18 persons, s-magnesium in 11, s-phosphate in seven and s-zinc in 14. Tongue epithelium atrophy was present in 35 patients. Malnutrition, defined as the presence of two or more criteria out of seven, was present in 48%. Malnutrition is frequent among the elderly upon admission to a medical department, and should be appropriately diagnosed and treated.