[Determination of nutritional levels in patients on chronic hemodialysis programs using anthropometric methods]

The results of a number of methods used in the cross-sectional nutritional assessment differ markedly in patients on regular hemodialysis (RHD). Correlations of nutritional parameters were investigated in 31 patients on RHD and in 31 control subjects with similar sex and age structure without any considerable difference in any of the examined nutritional parameters. In the patient group on RHD, beside a high mutual correlation of general nutritional parameters and a high correlation of general parameters with fat compartment parameters and the fat free compartment (protein) parameter, there is also a high correlation of fat parameters with the protein parameter which does not occur in the control group. This can possibly explain the difficulties in the nutritional assessment of patients on RHD. Out of this reason we suggest the usage of the RBM/F classification which is a combination of relative body mass values (RBM) and the body fat content (F) percentage.