Dietitians' practices in dialysis units in Brazil: nutritional assessment and intervention / Práticas de nutricionistas em unidades de diálise no Brasil: avaliação e intervenção nutricionais
The importance of dietitians in dialysis units is indisputable and mandatory in Brazil, but little is known about the practices adopted by these professionals.
Twenty four percent of the Brazilian dialysis units (n = 207) responded electronically. The most used nutritional assessment tools with or without a pre-established frequency were dietary surveys (96%) and Subjective Global Assessment (83%). The strategies in cases of risk or presence of malnutrition used most frequently (almost always/always) were instructions to increase energy and protein intake from foods (97%), and increasing the frequency of visits (88%). The frequency of prescribing commercial supplements with standard and specialized formulas was quite similar. The availability of dietary supplements by the public healthcare system to patients varied between regions.
A importância da atuação do nutricionista em unidades de diálise é indiscutível e obrigatória no Brasil, porém pouco sabemos sobre as práticas adotadas por esses profissionais.