Swedish translation and cultural adaptation of the scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA©)-A validated tool for screening and assessing malnutrition in clinical practice and research.

INTRODUCTION: The scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA©) is a validated tool for the screening, assessment and monitoring of malnutrition, and triaging of interventions. It contains a patient-generated component and a healthcare professional (HCP)-generated component. AIM: To translate the PG-SGA into Swedish, assess the linguistic and content validity of the Swedish version, and ensure conceptional, semantic and operational equivalence to the original English PG-SGA. METHODS: In line with the methodology used in previously translated and culturally adapted versions, the standardised 10-step process suggested by the International Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) was followed. In step 7, a cross-sectional study targeting patients n = 51 and HCPs n = 52 was performed at a university hospital in Sweden. Using separate questionnaires, patients assessed the patient component and HCPs, the professional component regarding perceived comprehensibility and difficulty (linguistic validity). The HCPs also assessed perceived relevance (content validity) of all items on the PG-SGA. Item indices for comprehensibility (I-CI), difficulty (I-DI) and content validity (I-CVI) were calculated and averaged into scale indices (S-CI, S-DI and S-CVI). Cut-off standards for item and scale indices were used as reference. RESULTS: The Swedish version of the PG-SGA rated excellent for comprehensibility (S-CI 0.96) and difficulty (S-DI 0.93) for the patient component. The professional component rated acceptable for comprehensibility (S-CI 0.89) and below acceptable for difficulty (S-DI 0.70), with the physical examination rated most difficult (I-DI 0.39 to 0.69). Content validity for the full Swedish PG-SGA was rated excellent (S-CVI 0.94). CONCLUSION: The patient component was considered clear and easy to complete. The full Swedish PG-SGA was considered relevant by HCPs for screening and assessment of malnutrition. Due to perceived difficulty with the physical examination, training of Swedish HCPs in using the PG-SGA is essential before implementing the professional component into clinical practice or research.

Clinical usefulness of the patient-generated subjective global assessment short form© for nutritional screening in patients with head and neck cancer: a multicentric study.

Nutritional screening and assessment are considered essential steps in nutritional care for cancer patients, malnutrition remains underreported in clinical practice. The aim of this study was to analyse the clinical usefulness of the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment short form (PG-SGA SF©) for nutritional screening in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC). This is a multicentre, cross-sectional study involving patients with HNC. The final score of the PG-SGA SF© was obtained and the nutritional status was diagnosed using the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA)®, classifying them as well-nourished or malnourished. Receiver operating characteristic curve, ordinal logistic regression, and C-statistic were used. In total, 353 patients with HNC were enrolled and the prevalence of malnutrition, according to the PG-SGA®, was 64.02% and the median final score of PG-SGA SF© was 11 points. The final score of the PG-SGA SF© had high accuracy (area under the curve = 0.915), and scores ≥9 had the best performance in diagnosing malnutrition. PG-SGA SF© final score ≥9 was associated with malnutrition (odds ratio = 28.32, 95% confidence interval= 15.98-50.17), with excellent discriminatory power (C-statistic = 0.872). In conclusion, the PG-SGA SF© demonstrated excellent performance for nutritional screening in patients with HNC. Given that it is a simple instrument that is faster to administer than the PG-SGA®, we recommend its use in clinical practice among such patients.

Assessment of Nutritional Status in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer Before Radiotherapy: A Single-center, Cross-sectional Study.

Objective: It is important to assess nutritional status to determine the presence of malnutrition because poor nutritional status will reduce the efficacy and increase the side effects of radiotherapy. The aim of this research was to assess nutritional status by comparing several parameters, namely anthropometry, biochemistry, physical condition, and inflammatory parameters, with Patient Generated-Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) as the gold standard. Methods: A cross-sectional study with 78 subjects was conducted at the General Hospital Dr. Sardjito Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in 2022. The Malnutrition Screening Tool, Simple Nutrition Screening Tool, PG-SGA, and objective parameter data were used in the nutritional assessment. The objective parameters were determined by analyzing anthropometric data [body weight, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), and body fat], biochemical data (albumin and a complete blood profile), physical data (hand grip strength), and food intake data using the 1×24-hour recall method. The data were analyzed using One-Way ANOVA and the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Malnutrition was found in 33.3% of pre-radiotherapy head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. Patients with good nutritional status did not experience weight loss, decreased appetite, gastrointestinal symptoms, decreased functional capacity, or fat and/or muscle deficit (p<0.05). The findings showed a significant relationship between PG-SGA and nutritional status based on body weight, weight loss, MUACs, handgrip strength, visceral fat, resting metabolic rate (RMR), and hemoglobin (p<0.05). A better nutritional status was associated with higher parameter values. Conclusions: The method for nutritional status assessment in HNC patients undergoing radiotherapy can be performed by measuring body weight, weight loss, upper arm circumference, visceral fat, hemoglobin, and RMR in addition to PG-SGA as the gold standard.

Comparison of diagnosis-related group based reimbursement and case-mix index within hospitalized patients before and after modified malnutrition diagnosis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Lack of professional and accurate diagnosis of malnutrition led to a reduction in Diagnosis Related Group (DRG) payment and a decrease in Case-Mix Index (CMI). The aim of this study was to explore the effects of adding a proper nutritional diagnosis and modifying complication groups on DRG payment and CMI. METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis was performed on patients ad-mitted to the hospital from January to June 2022 who had received a nutritional assessment. Patients were diagnosed as well-nourished, mild malnutrition, moderate malnutrition or severe malnutrition according to patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) scores within 24 hours of admission. CMI and DRG hospital internal control standards were recalculated and compared with the original values. RESULTS: A total of 254 patients were enrolled, including 40 patients with mild malnutrition, 74 patients with moderate malnutrition and 122 patients with severe malnutrition. Of all subjects, 111 changed complication groups. The median of the DRG hospital internal control standard (12006.09 vs. 13797.19, p=0.01) and the median of CMI (0.91 vs. 1.04, p=0.026) were significantly higher than those before the diagnostic change. In patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the CMI value, hospital control standard of DRG, and the classification of DRG were significantly different from those before diagnosis revision (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Fully identification and correct coding of malnutrition cases are conducive for hospitals to receive appropriate DRG compensation, and further contribute to the improvement of medical quality and the economic sustain-ability of hospitals.

Oral health problems are associated with malnutrition in hospitalised adult patients.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Hospitalised patients are especially vulnerable to malnutrition, which is associated with an increased risk of complications, leading to longer hospital stays, increased healthcare costs, and with a potentially negative effect on the prognosis. Poor oral health may make food intake difficult and contribute to poor nutritional status. The aim of the present cross-sectional study was to assess the occurrence of poor oral health and malnutrition in adult hospitalised patients, and further to investigate associations between oral health problems and malnutrition. METHODS: The Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) determined the patients' nutritional status. The oral health condition was evaluated according to the Revised Oral Assessment Guide-Jönköping (ROAG-J) and unstimulated salivary flow rate. Clinical information was collected from medical records. RESULTS: The study population included 118 patients from 15 somatic and 3 psychiatric wards at a University Hospital in Norway. Nearly half the patients (46%) were categorised as malnourished and in need of symptom alleviation or nutritional intervention. Malnutrition was found in all diagnostic conditions. According to ROAG-J, at least one oral health problem was identified in 93% of the patients. Severe oral health problems were more frequent in malnourished patients. Overall, both the number and total score of oral health problems were associated with malnutrition (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.20-2.06 and OR 1.47, 95% CI 1.17-1.83, respectively). Of specific oral health items, problems with lips and mucous membranes were significantly associated with malnutrition. One-fifth of all patients had hyposalivation, but this was not associated with malnutrition. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health problems and malnutrition are commonly seen in hospitalised adult patients. The association between the two calls for raised awareness of oral health issues in assessing patients' nutritional status. Further study is required to clarify whether oral health problems constitute a causal factor in malnutrition.

Linguistic and content validation of the translated and culturally adapted patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA).

The Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) is an instrument to screen, assess and monitor malnutrition and risk factors, and to triage for interventions. After having translated and culturally adapted the original PG-SGA for the Italian setting, according to International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) Principles, we tested linguistic validity, i.e., perceived comprehensibility and difficulty, and content validity (relevance) of the Italian version of the PG-SGA in patients with cancer and a multidisciplinary sample of healthcare professionals (HCPs). METHODS: After the translation and cultural adaptation of the original PG-SGA for the Italian setting, the patient component (i.e., PG-SGA Short Form (SF) was tested for linguistic validity (i.e., comprehensibility ad difficulty) in 120 Italian patients with cancer and 81 Italian HCPs. The full PG-SGA, i.e., patient and professional component of the PG-SGA, was tested for content validity, i.e., relevance, in 81 Italian HCPs. The data were collected by a questionnaire and evaluations were operationalized by a 4-point scale. Through item and scale indices we evaluated the comprehensibility (I-CI, S-CI), difficulty (I-DI, S-DI) and content validity (I-CVI, S-CVI). Scale indices 0.80-0.89 were considered acceptable, and scale indices ≥0.90 were considered excellent. RESULTS: Patients perceived comprehensibility and difficulty of the PG-SGA SF (Boxes) as excellent (S-CI = 0.98, S-DI = 0.96). Professionals perceived comprehensibility of the professional component (Worksheets) as excellent (S-CI = 0.92), difficulty as acceptable (S-DI = 0.85), and content validity of the full PG-SGA as excellent (S-CVI = 0.92). Dietitians gave higher scores (indicating better scores) on comprehensibility, difficulty, and content validity of Worksheet 4 (physical exam) than the other professions. In Worksheet 4, four items were considered most difficult to complete and were considered below acceptable range. Relevance was perceived as excellent by professionals for both the patient component (S-CVI = 0.93) and the professional component (S-CVI = 0.90), resulting in S-CVI = 0.92 for the full PG-SGA. Slight textual modifications were implemented resulting in the final version of the Italian PG-SGA. CONCLUSIONS: Translation and cultural adaptation of the original PG-SGA resulted in the Italian version of the PG-SGA that maintained its original purpose and meaning and can be completed adequately and easily by patients and professionals. The Italian PG-SGA is considered relevant for screening, assessing and monitoring malnutrition and risk factors, as well as triaging for interventions by Italian HCPs.

Predictive validity of GLIM malnutrition diagnosis in patients with colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Considering that the validation of the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) remains unclear in patients with colorectal cancer, the present study aimed to assess the agreement, accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and prognostic effect of the GLIM on survival when compared with the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA). METHODS: Patients with colorectal cancer who were scheduled to undergo a routine abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan were recruited. Using the GLIM two-step approach, the patients were first screened for malnutrition by using the PG-SGA Short Form (score ≥3). The malnutrition diagnosis was based on the etiologic (disease burden [cancer] or reduced food intake) and phenotypic GLIM criteria, including weight loss, body mass index, and skeletal muscle index at the third lumbar vertebra when using the CT scans. The food intake was assessed by the PG-SGA. RESULTS: This study included 191 patients (age, 60.5 ± 11.3 years; 57% men), and 23% and 32% were malnourished according to the GLIM and the PG-SGA, respectively. The GLIM revealed fair sensitivity (64%), good agreement (kappa = 0.65), specificity (96%), and diagnostic accuracy for detecting malnutrition (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.80; 95% CI, 0.72-0.88) when compared with the PG-SGA. The malnutrition value according to the GLIM and the PG-SGA was associated with short-term survival. However, only the PG-SGA was associated with long-term survival. CONCLUSIONS: Although showing fair sensitivity, the GLIM had good agreement, specificity, and diagnostic accuracy for malnutrition detection and was an independent predictor of short-term survival in patients with colorectal cancer.

[Exploration of phase angle used to construct PG-SGA nutritional assessment and prediction model for malignant tumor patients].

Objective: To explore the value of phase angle (PA) in constructing a predictive model of nutrition evaluation for tumor patients. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 1 129 patients with malignant tumors hospitalized in the Cancer Center of Changzhi People's Hospital from June 2020 to February 2021. PA values of six parts of the body were measured by the body composition analyzer, including: left arm (LA), right arm (RA), left leg (LL), right leg (RL), the trunk (TR), and the whole body (WB). Patients' body mass index (BMI) was calculated and patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) was assessed. The differences of PA values of six parts were compared and their correlations with BMI and PG-SGA in combination with age, gender and tumor disease types were analyzed, binary classification regression on BMI and PG-SGA was performed, and the functions of the best prediction model was fitted. Decision tree, random forest, Akaike information criterion in a Stepwise Algorithm (stepAIC) and generalized likelihood ratio test were used to select appropriate variables, and the logit logistic regression model was used to fit the data. Results: Comparing the PA values of six parts in pairs, it was found that the PA values of LA and RA, LL and RL, and TR and WB were linearly correlated and the coefficient was close to 1 (P<0.001). Binary classification regression was performed for BMI and PG-SGA, respectively. In order to make the data have clinical significance, 18.5 kg/m(2) was used as the classification point for BMI, 4 and 9 were used as the classification points for PG-SGA score, and the models of A, B and C were obtained. Suitable variables including PA-LA, PA-TR and tumor disease types were used as variables to fit BMI classification; BMI, PA-LA and age were used as variables to fit the PG-SGA model with 9 as the classification point. PA-LA, PA-TR, BMI, age and tumor disease types were used as variables to fit the PG-SGA model with 4 as the classification point. In this study, the predicted values of models A, B and C obtained by R-studio were imported into SPSS 26.0 software, and the cut-off values of classification were obtained by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The ROC analytic results showed that the best cut-off values of Model A, B and C were 0.155, 0.793 and 0.295. Model A recommended when the probability is >0.155, a patient's nutritiond tatus should be classified as BMI < 18.5 kg/m(2) group. Model B recommended that PG-SGA<9 group be classified as the probability is >0.793. Model C recommended that PG-SGA < 4 group should be classified when probability is >0.295. Conclusions: The PG-SGA classification prediction model is simple to operate, and the nutritional status of patients can be roughly divided into three groups: normal or suspected malnutrition group (PG-SGA<4), moderate malnutrition group (4≤PG-SGA<9), and severe malnutrition group (PG-SGA≥9). This model can more efficiently predict the nutritional status of cancer patients, greatly simplify the nutritional assessment process, and better guide the standardized treatment of clinical malnutrition.

Associations of patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) and NUTRISCORE with survival in gastric cancer patients: timing matters, a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The timing of nutritional assessment may be important to treat cancer patients and predict their prognosis. This study examined whether Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and NUTRISCORE scores were associated with survival among gastric cancer patients who underwent surgery and chemotherapy and whether the timing of the assessment after surgery mattered. METHODS: A total of 952 gastric cancer patients (622 men and 330 women) were included in this retrospective cohort study. The PG-SGA and NUTRISCORE scores were calculated at 1 month (n = 952), 2 months (n = 657), and 3 months (n = 294) after surgery. Cox proportional hazards model was used to calculate the hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: The PG-SGA scores assessed at 1 month after gastrectomy were not associated with survival. However, high PG-SGA scores at 2 months after gastrectomy (median = 65 days) were associated with an increased risk of mortality; the HR (95% CI) was 2.26 (1.22-4.21) for 9-11 vs. ≤ 5 of PG-SGA scores. When we included patients who received all three consecutive consultations, HR (95% CI) was 2.56 (1.02-6.42) for ≥ 9 (malnutrition) vs. ≤ 8 of PG-SGA scores assessed at 3 months after surgery (median days = 98 days). Likewise, high NUTRISCORE scores assessed at the 3-month follow-up were associated with higher mortality; the HR (95% CI) was 3.84 (1.18-12.55) for ≥ 7 vs. ≤ 4 of NUTRISCORE scores. CONCLUSION: Malnutrition assessed with the PG-SGA and NUTRISCORE at 2 to 3 months after gastrectomy was associated with poor survival among gastric cancer patients. Our findings suggest that the timing of the nutritional evaluation may be important in identifying and treating malnutrition related to gastric cancer prognosis.

A long-term nutritional assessment of maxillary cancer patients undergoing prosthodontic rehabilitation after surgery: A longitudinal study.

Purpose: To evaluate the nutritional status (NS) of patients planned for maxillectomy and prosthodontic rehabilitation using three nutritional assessment methods. Methods: This longitudinal study enrolled 18 planned maxillectomy patients following the inclusion and exclusion criteria. NS was evaluated at five stages: before surgery (S0), 2 weeks after surgery (S1), 3 months after insertion of intermediate obturator (S2), just before fabrication of definitive obturator (S3), and 3 months after insertion of definitive obturator (S4) using two nutritional assessment tools i.e. Patient Generated -Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) &Nutritional risk index (NRI); and body composition indicators i.e. body mass index (BMI), fat free mass (FFM), total body water (TBW), skeletal muscle mass (SMM) and skeletal muscle mass index (SMMI).To determine the changes in patient's nutritional status among different time points Repeated Measure ANOVA with Bonferroni post hoc adjustments was used. Results: Out of 18 patients, 12 were completed the study. NS of maxillectomy patients deteriorates significantly (p < .05) till stage S2. At S3, significant improvement occurred as compared to stage S2, but it remained significantly less than pre-surgical level. However, at stage S4, all parameters were statistically comparable to S0 (p > .05) except for PG-SGA (p < .001) and SMM (p = .044). Conclusion: NS of maxillectomy patients worsen post surgically due to surgical morbidity and adverse effects of radiotherapy (RT) but improves with post-surgical healing, resolution of sequel of RT and improved oral function due to well-adapted obturator prosthesis.

A simple assessment model based on phase angle for malnutrition and prognosis in hospitalized cancer patients.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Malnutrition in cancer patients is a common but under-diagnosed condition that has negative effects on clinical outcomes. The development of an easy and reliable malnutrition assessment tool is thus critical for identification and nutritional support. We aimed to develop a phase angle (PA)-based prediction model of malnutrition and evaluate it in patient prognosis. METHODS: A retrospective cohort of data consisting of demographic, clinical parameter and PA test from 702 adult hospitalized cancer patients between June 2020 to February 2021 was analysed. PAs for 6 body sites were measured by a body composition analyser. Patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) scale was used as the diagnostic standard of nutritional status (PG-SGA ≥ 4 points defined as malnutrition). Decision tree, mean decrease accuracy of random forest, stepAIC strategy and test of generalized likelihood ratio were employed to select important variables and develop models for predicting PG-SGA binary classification (PG-SGA < 4 or ≥ 4 as a split). Survival curves were plotted by using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: In all, 490 (69.8%) patients were malnourished according to their actual PG-SGA scores. Except for age, tumor type and body mass index (BMI), PA of the left arm was found to influence malnutrition classification and incorporated in the final predictive model. The model achieved good performance with an AUC of 0.813, 75.9% sensitivity and 73.3% specificity. The actual and predicted survival curves were almost overlapped. CONCLUSION: This study provides a simple nutritional assessment tool which may be used to facilitate oncology physicians to identify cancer patients at nutritional risk and potentially implement nutritional support. CLINICAL TRIAL NO: ChiCTR2100047858.

Development and validation of a Modified Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment as a nutritional assessment tool in cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: Completing Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) questionnaires is time consuming. This study aimed to develop and validate an easy-to-use modified PG-SGA (mPG-SGA) for cancer patients. METHODS: Seventy professionals assessed the content validity, comprehensibility, and difficulty of the full PG-SGA. A survey including the PG-SGA and other questionnaires was completed by 34 071 adult hospitalized cancer patients with first cancer diagnosis or recurrent disease with any tumour comorbidities from the INSCOC study. Among them, 1558 patients were followed for 5 years after admission. Reliability and rank correlation were estimated to assess the consistency between PG-SGA items and to select mPG-SGA items. The external and internal validity, test-retest reliability, and predictive validity were tested for the mPG-SGA via comparison with both the PG-SGA and abridged PG-SGA (abPG-SGA). RESULTS: After deleting items that more than 50% of professionals considered difficult to evaluate (Worksheet 4) and items with an item-total correlation <0.1, the mPG-SGA was constructed. Nutritional status was categorized using mPG-SGA scores as well-nourished (0 points) or mildly (1-2 points), moderately (3-6 points), or severely malnourished (≥7 points) based on the area under curve (0.962, 0.989, and 0.985) and maximal sensitivity (0.924, 0.918, and 0.945) and specificity (1.000, 1.000, and 0.938) of the cut-off scores. The external and internal validity and test-retest reliability were good. Significant median overall survival differences were found among nutritional status groups categorized by the mPG-SGA: 24, 18, 14, and 10 months for well-nourished, mildly malnourished, moderately malnourished, and severely malnourished, respectively (all Ps < 0.05). Neither the PG-SGA nor the abridged PG-SGA could discriminate the median overall survival differences between the well-nourished and mildly malnourished groups. CONCLUSIONS: We systematically developed and validated the mPG-SGA as an easier-to-use nutritional assessment tool for cancer patients. The mPG-SGA appears to have better predictive validity for survival than the PG-SGA and abridged PG-SGA.

PG-SGA SF in nutrition assessment and survival prediction for elderly patients with cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study was sought to report the prevalence of malnutrition in elderly patients with cancer. Validate the predictive value of the nutritional assessment tool (Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short Form, PG-SGA SF) for clinical outcomes and assist the therapeutic decision. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of a multicentric, observational cohort study. Elderly patients with cancer older than 65 years were enrolled after the first admission. Nutritional status was identified using the PG-SGA SF. RESULTS: Of the 2724 elderly patients included in the analysis, 65.27% of patients were male (n = 1778); the mean age was 71.00 ± 5.36 years. 31.5% of patients were considered malnourished according to PG-SGA SF. In multivariate analysis, malnutrition(PG-SGA SF > 5) was significantly associated with worse OS (HR: 1.47,95%CI:1.29-1.68), affects the quality of life, and was related to more frequent nutrition impact symptoms. During a median follow-up of 4.5 years, 1176 death occurred. The mortality risk was 41.10% for malnutrition during the first 12 months and led to a rate of 323.98 events per-1000-patient-years. All nutritional assessment tools were correlated with each other (PG-SGA SF vs. PG-SGA: r = 0.98; PG-SGA SF vs. GLIM[Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition]: r = 0.48, all P < 0.05). PG-SGA SF and PG-SGA performed similarly to predict mortality but better than GLIM. PG-SGA SF improves the predictive ability of the TNM classification system for mortality in elderly patients with cancer, including distinguishing patients' prognoses and directing immunotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The nutritional status as measured by PG-SGA SF which is a prognostic factor for OS in elderly cancer patients and could improve the prognostic model of TNM.

Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool and Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short Form and their predictive validity in hospitalized patients.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Malnutrition screening is a first step in the nutrition care process for hospitalized patients, to identify those at risk of malnutrition and associated worse outcome, preceding further assessment and intervention. Frequently used malnutrition screening tools including the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) mainly screen for characteristics of malnutrition, while the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short Form (PG-SGA SF) additionally includes risk factors for development of malnutrition, yielding a higher percentage of patients at risk. To investigate whether this translates into higher risk of worse outcome, we aimed to determine the predictive validity of MUST and PG-SGA SF for prolonged hospitalization >8 days, readmission, and mortality <6 months after hospital discharge. METHODS: In this observational study, MUST was performed according to university hospital protocol. Additional screening using PG-SGA SF was performed within 24 h of hospital admission (high risk: MUST ≥ 2, PG_SGA SF ≥ 9). Associations of MUST and PG-SGA SF with outcomes were analyzed by logistic- and Cox PH-regression. RESULTS: Of 430 patients analyzed (age 58 ± 16 years, 53% male, BMI 26.9 ± 5.5 kg/m2), MUST and PG-SGA SF identified 32 and 80 at high risk, respectively. One-hundred-eight patients had prolonged hospitalization, 109 were readmitted and 20 died. High risk by MUST was associated with mortality (HR = 3.9; 95% CI 1.3-12.2, P = 0.02), but not with other endpoints. High risk by PG-SGA SF was associated with prolonged hospitalization (OR = 2.5; 95% CI 1.3-5.0, P = 0.009), readmission (HR = 1.9; 95% CI 1.1-3.2, P = 0.03), and mortality (HR = 34.8; 95% CI 4.2-289.3, P = 0.001), independent of age, sex, hospital ward and previous hospitalization <6 months. In the 363/430 patients classified as low risk by MUST, high risk by PG-SGA SF was independently associated with higher risk of readmission (HR = 1.9; 95% CI 1.0-3.5, P = 0.04) and mortality (HR = 19.5; 95% CI 2.0-189.4, P = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Whereas high malnutrition risk by MUST was only associated with mortality, PG-SGA SF was associated with higher risk of prolonged hospitalization, readmission, and mortality. In patients considered as low risk by MUST, high malnutrition risk by PG-SGA SF was also predictive of worse outcome. Our findings support the use of PG-SGA SF in routine care to identify patients at risk of malnutrition and worse outcome, and enable proactive interventions.

Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short Form better predicts length of stay than Short Nutritional Assessment Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE: Malnutrition screening instruments used in hospitals mainly include criteria to identify characteristics of malnutrition. However, to tackle malnutrition in an early stage, identifying risk factors for malnutrition in addition to characteristics may be valuable. The aim of this study was to determine the predictive validity of the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA SF), which addresses malnutrition characteristics and risk factors, and the Short Nutritional Assessment Questionnaire (SNAQ), which addresses mainly malnutrition characteristics, for length of stay (LOS) in a mixed hospital population. METHODS: Patients (N = 443) were screened with the PG-SGA SF and SNAQ in the first 72 h after admission to the lung, cardiology, or surgery ward. The McNemar-Bowker test was used to investigate the symmetry between the SNAQ and PG-SGA SF categorization for low, medium, and high risk. The predictive value of the PG-SGA SF and SNAQ was assessed by γ-regression before and after adjusting for several confounders. RESULTS: Of the 443 patients included, 23% and 58% were categorized as being at medium/high risk for malnutrition according to the SNAQ and PG-SGA SF, respectively. The regression analysis indicated that LOS of high-risk patients according to PG-SGA SF was 36% longer than that of low-risk patients (P = 0.001). LOS in patients at high risk according to the SNAQ did not significantly differ from that of SNAQ low-risk patients. CONCLUSIONS: The PG-SGA SF, as a proactive malnutrition screening instrument, predicts LOS in various hospital wards, whereas the SNAQ, as a reactive instrument, does not. Therefore, we recommend the PG-SGA SF for proactive screening for malnutrition risk.

Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition criteria as a nutrition assessment tool for patients with cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Since the launch of Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM), there has been an urgent need to validate the new criteria, especially in patients with cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate and validate the use of the GLIM criteria in patients with cancer. METHOD: This multicenter cohort study compared the GLIM with the scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (sPG-SGA). The 1-y survival rate, multivariate Cox regression analysis, κ-value, sensitivity, specificity, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and time-dependent ROC analysis were applied to identify the performance of the GLIM. RESULTS: Among the 3777 patients in the study, 50.9% versus 49.1% or 36.3% versus 63.7% of the patients were defined as well-nourished and malnourished by GLIM or sPG-SGA, respectively. GLIM presented moderate consistency (κ = 0.54, P < 0.001), fair sensitivity and specificity (70.5 and 88.3%) compared with sPG-SGA. There was no difference in the 1-y survival rate in malnourished patients (76.9 versus 76.4%, P = 0.711), but it was significantly different in well-nourished patients (85.8 versus 90.3%, P < 0.001) between GLIM and sPG-SGA. The above difference was eliminated after omitted nutritional risk screening (NRS)-2002 screening before GLIM (88.1 versus 90.3%, P = 0.078). Omitting NRS-2002 screening before GLIM did not change the 1-y survival rate in well-nourished or malnourished patients by GLIM with NRS-2002 screening (76.9 versus 78.9%, P = 0.099; 85.8% versus 88.1%, P = 0.092) although it significantly raised the rate of malnutrition to 72.5%. The combination of "weight loss and cancer" showed better performance than other combinations. CONCLUSIONS: GLIM could be a convenient alternative to sPG-SGA in nutrition assessment for patients with cancer. The combination of "weight loss and cancer" was better than other combinations. Considering the higher risk for malnutrition in patients with cancer, NRS-2002 screening may not be needed before GLIM.

Patient-reported outcome measures obtained via E-Health tools ease the assessment burden and encourage patient participation in cancer care (PaCC Study).

Patient-reported outcome measures obtained via E-Health tools ease the assessment burden and encourage patient participation in cancer care (PaCC Study) BACKGROUND: E-health based patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) have the potential to automate early identification of both nutrition status and distress status in cancer patients while facilitating treatment and encouraging patient participation. This cross-sectional study assessed the acceptability, accuracy, and clinical utility of PROMs collected via E-Health tools among patients undergoing treatment for stomach, colorectal, and pancreatic tumors. RESULTS: Eight-nine percent mostly, or completely, agreed that PROMs via tablets should be integrated in routine clinical care. Men were significantly more likely to require help completing the questionnaires than women (inv.OR= 0.51, 95% CI=(0.27, 0.95), p = 0.035). The level of help needed increased by 3% with each 1-year increase in age (inv. OR=1.03, 95% CI=(1.01, 1.06), p = 0.013). On average, a patient tended to declare weight which was 0.84 kg inferior to their true weight (Bland and Altman 95 % CI=(-3.9, 5.6); SD: 2.41) and a height which was 0.95 cm superior to their true height (Bland and Altman 95 % CI=(-5, 3.1); SD 2.08). Patient-reported nutrition status was significantly associated with the professionally generated assessment (95% CI=(2.27, 4.15), p < 0.001). As nutrition status declined, the distress score increased (95%CI=(0.88, 1.68), p < 0.001). Of the patients, 48.8% who were both distressed and malnourished requested supportive care to address their problems. CONCLUSION: Patient-reported assessments utilizing E-health tools are an accurate and efficient method to encourage patient participation in cancer care while simultaneously ensuring that regular assessment of psycho-social and nutritional aspects of care are efficiently integrated in the daily clinical routine.

A Japanese translation, cultural adaptation, and linguistic and content validity confirmation of the Scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment.

PURPOSE: The Scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA©) is a globally recognized and used nutritional screening, assessment, monitoring, and triaging tool. The aim of this study was to translate and culturally adapt the original English PG-SGA for the Japanese speaking populations and to assess its linguistic validity (i.e., comprehensibility, difficulty) and content validity, as perceived by Japanese patients and healthcare professionals. METHODS: In accordance with methodology used in previous Dutch, Thai, German, and Norwegian PG-SGA studies, we followed the ten steps of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) Principles of Good Practice for Translation and Cultural Adaptation for Patient-Reported Outcome Measures. The study enrolled 50 patients and 50 healthcare professionals (HCPs) to evaluate the comprehensibility and difficulty of the translated and culturally adapted PG-SGA. The HCPs also evaluated the content validity of the translation. We evaluated each item and quantified scale indices for content validity (item content validity index (I-CVI), scale content validity index (S-CVI)), comprehensibility (item comprehensibility index (I-CI), scale comprehensibility index (S-CI)), and difficulty (item difficulty index (I-DI), scale difficulty index (S-DI)). RESULTS: Patients evaluated the comprehensibility and difficulty of the patient component as excellent (S-CI = 0.97, S-DI = 0.96). The professionals rated the Japanese version of both components of the PG-SGA as very relevant (S-CVI = 0.94). The professionals evaluated the comprehensibility of the professional component as being acceptable (S-CI = 0.88) but difficult (S-DI = 0.69), based predominantly on items related to physical examination (I-DI = 0.33-0.67). CONCLUSION: The PG-SGA was systematically translated and culturally adapted for the Japanese setting according to the ISPOR process. The Japanese version of the PG-SGA was perceived as comprehensive, easy to use, and relevant. Perceived difficulty in professional components, specifically in the context of metabolic demand and physical examination, will require appropriate training for professionals in order to optimize implementation.

The validity of the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short-form© in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The high prevalence of malnourished cancer patients highlights the importance of sensitive and specific tools for nutritional risk and status assessment screening, namely the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA®). This study aimed to assess whether the short-form version of the PG-SGA® (PG-SGA© SF) would be appropriate to identify the nutritional risk of patients when compared with the final global score of PG-SGA© (long-form version). METHODS: This transversal and observational study comprised a convenience sample of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy at the Champalimaud Clinical Centre between December 2016 and February 2018. Clinical data and anthropometric parameters were collected in order to apply PG-SGA® and PG-SGA© SF. The data was statistically analysed through SPSS version 22 (SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA). RESULTS: In this study 355 patients were enrolled and PG-SGA© SF results showed that 69.3% (n = 246) of the population presented at least one risk factor for malnourishment (Σ (box A) ≥1). Additionally, PG-SGA® revealed that 50% of patients (n = 177) have a risk of developing malnourishment or are already malnourished (B and C classification). The concordance of results showed to be high (coefficient k = 0.62; p < 0.001), meaning that PG-SGA SF© has a good sensibility (95%) and specificity (67%) for the identification of nutritional risk and assessment of nutritional status when compared with the complete version of PG-SGA©. CONCLUSIONS: According to our results, PG-SGA© SF is a useful and sufficient tool, representing an easier and faster way to identify at-risk or malnourished patients.

Greek translation and cultural adaptation of the scored patient-generated subjective global assessment: A nutritional assessment tool suitable for cancer patients.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Patients with cancer frequently present with disease-related malnutrition and functional decline. The scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA©) is a malnutrition screening and assessment tool commonly used in patients with cancer. The aim of the current study was to translate and culturally adapt the original English PG-SGA for the Greek setting, including assessment of comprehensibility, difficulty and content validity in patients and healthcare professionals. METHODS: Our study was conducted according to the ten steps of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) Principles of Good Practice for Translation and Cultural Adaptation. Comprehensibility and difficulty of the Greek translation were assessed in 100 patients and 100 healthcare professionals (HCPs) from Greece. Content validity of the translation was assessed among HCPs. Item and scale indices were calculated for comprehensibility (I-CI; S-CI), difficulty (I-DI; S-DI), and content validity (I-CVI; S-CVI). RESULTS: Patient perceived comprehensibility and difficulty of the PG-SGA were considered to be excellent (S-CI = 0.97, S-DI = 0.97). HCPs perceived content validity for the patient component was also excellent (S-CVI = 0.95). The perceived content validity, comprehensibility and difficulty for the professional component of the PG-SGA, as perceived by the HCPs, was excellent (S-CVI = 0.94, S-CI = 0.94, S-DI = 0.90), with the physical exam being perceived as most difficult (I-DI = 0.78-0.92). CONCLUSIONS: Our study resulted in the successful translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the original English PG-SGA for the Greek setting. The Greek language version of the PG-SGA is characterized by high comprehensibility, low difficulty, and is considered relevant for use in Greece.