Nutritional status and oxidative stress on admission and discharge in myocardial infarction patients

Background: This study evaluated the nutritional status, prooxidant-antioxidant balance (PAB) and the effect of hospitalization on these factors in patients with myocardial infarction (MI).Methods: Totally 57 patients diagnosed with MI were recruited (mean age of 58.44±12.80). Nutritional status was assessed using the Nutritional Risk Screening (NRS-2002) questionnaire in patients admitted to the cardiac care unit (CCU) in Ghaem hospital in Mashhad, Iran. Anthropometrics, biochemical parameters and changes in these parameters were assessed in all patients. Prooxidant–antioxidant balance (PAB) as a marker of oxidative stress was also assessed. Of the total group, 15 cases remained in hospital for more than one week, and in this subgroup the above measurements were also assessed on the day of discharge.Results: On admission 49.1% of patients were well-nourished and 50.9% were nutritionally at risk. As may have been expected, the patients were overweight (36.8%) or obese (19.2%), and measures of adiposity were all high. Well-nourished patients had a lower serum PAB value. However the differences were not statistically significant. The prevalence of the index of sub-optimal nutrition increased from 46.7% on admission to 53.3% on discharge, though this increase was not statistically significant, possibly due to small sample size. Serum PAB increased after a week of admission, however this change was not significant (p=0.249).Conclusions: The prevalence of sub-optimal nutrition in patients with MI is high in Iran and increases during staying in hospital.