Practical and Validated Use of the Mini Nutritional Assessment in Geriatric Evaluation

Abstract In the past two decades, a number of geriatric assessment instruments have been developed to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of high‐risk elderly patients; tools are available to assess physical health, functional ability, psychological health, and socioeconomic and environmental changes with age. However, too little attention has been given to identifying those elderly who would benefit from early detection of malnutrition. The Mini Nutritional Assessment instrument was designed and validated in a series of studies to assess which geriatric patients are at risk for malnutrition. Nutrition assessment using this instrument takes approximately 15 minutes and can easily be administered by health professionals in geriatric clinics, and at admission to hospitals and/or nursing homes for early detection of patients who could be helped by nutrition intervention.