The Nutritional Health for the Elderly Reference Centre Study (NHERC Study)

NCT03240952 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: BL35 (Part 1)
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 400
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 4

Brief Summary

Elderly are at greater risk of dietary insufficiency due to age-related increases in nutrient requirements concomitant with a reduction in energy requirements, decreases in appetite and energy intake. Currently there is a gap in knowledge of the factors that are associated with malnutrition in the elderly in Singapore. In addition, there is no "reference" database on anthropometric measurements and biochemical indices for elderly with a range of nutrition status in Singapore. Thus, the objectives of this cross-sectional study are to examine factors influencing nutritional status and to determine the reference values for anthropometric and biochemical measurements related to nutritional status for community-dwelling elderly in Singapore.

Conditions

Malnutrition

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• MUST

  Malnutrition risk using Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool

  Baseline

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Body weight, fat mass, fat free mass

  Baseline

• Pre-albumin

  Baseline

• Albumin and total protein

  Baseline

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 65 Years - 110 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

This cross-sectional study will include 400 elderly with normal nutrition (MUST score: 0) and 800 elderly who are at risk of undernutrition (MUST score ≥ 1). Community-dwelling elderly recently discharged from the hospital as well as those who recently visited polyclinics in Singapore will be recruited for the study.

You may qualify if:

• Male or female participant aged ≥65 years.
• Community-dweller, i.e. not staying in a residential intermediate and long-term care (ILTC) service institution.
• Participant is being discharged home directly (applicable for hospital cohort).
• Participant is community ambulant with or without aid.
• Participant does not have any chronic disease(s) or has stable chronic disease(s) including hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cardiovascular disease in the opinion of the Study Physician, at study entry.
• Participant has voluntarily signed and dated an informed consent form (ICF), approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) and provided authorization prior to any participation in the study.
• Participants will be able to communicate and follow instructions.
• Participant is able to consume food and beverages orally.

You may not qualify if:

• Participant has been diagnosed with dementia according to medical records.
• Participant has been diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes according to medical records. (Note: This includes participant with controlled diabetes.)
• Participant has any active infectious disease (such as tuberculosis, Hepatitis B or C, HIV infection) according to medical records.
• Participant has been diagnosed with severe gastrointestinal disorders including celiac disease, short bowel syndrome, pancreatic insufficiency, or cystic fibrosis according to medical records.
• Participant has been diagnosed with end stage organ or pre-terminal diseases or acute myocardial infarction within the last 30 days from the screening according to medical records.
• Participant has malignancy according to medical records.
• Participant is taking part in another study that has not been approved as a concomitant study by the study team.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Abbott Nutrition: lead
• Changi General Hospital: collaborator
• SingHealth Polyclinics: collaborator

Study Sites (4)

Marine Parade Polyclinic

Singapore, 440080, Singapore

Location

Bedok Polyclinic

Singapore, 460212, Singapore

Location

Tampines Polyclinic

Singapore, 529203, Singapore

Location

Changi General Hospital

Singapore, 529889, Singapore

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Ong RHS, Chow WL, Cheong M, Lim GH, Xie W, Baggs G, Huynh DTT, Oh HC, How CH, Tan NC, Tey SL, Chew STH. Associations between socio-demographics, nutrition knowledge, nutrition competencies and attitudes in community-dwelling healthy older adults in Singapore: findings from the SHIELD study. J Health Popul Nutr. 2021 Dec 11;40(1):52. doi: 10.1186/s41043-021-00277-4.

  PMID: 34895351 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Malnutrition

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Nutrition Disorders; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases

Study Officials

• Siew Ling Tey, Ph.D.

  Abbott Nutrition Research & Development

  STUDY CHAIR

• Samuel TH Chew, MB.BCh.BAO

  Changi General Hospital

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: CROSS SECTIONAL
• Sponsor Type: INDUSTRY
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 1, 2017
• First Posted: August 7, 2017
• Study Start: August 30, 2017
• Primary Completion: May 28, 2018
• Study Completion: July 26, 2018
• Last Updated: April 15, 2020

Record last verified: 2020-04

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

SG (4)