Effect of Long-Term Proton Pump Inhibitor Therapy on Nutritional Status in Elderly Hospitalized Patients.

The purpose was to investigate the association between proton pump inhibitor (PPI) therapy and nutritional status in elderly hospitalized patients. Participants were 190 elderly patients admitted to the long-term care wards, convalescence rehabilitation wards, and community integrated care wards in January 2015. Nutritional status was assessed using the mini nutritional assessment short-form (MNA-SF). The PPI use group was compared with the PPI non-use group regarding nutrition status. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine whether the period of PPI therapy was associated independently with malnutrition following adjustment for covariates including gender, age, and serum albumin level. Forty-one patients were male (22%) and 149 patients were female (78%), with a mean age of 85.4±8.4. Fifty-three patients (28%) took PPIs (with a median prescription period of 91 d, ranging from 51 to 227). With a MNA-SF score of 7 points or lower designated as malnutrition, there was no significant difference in nutritional status between the PPI and non-PPI groups (p=0.172). The median MNA-SF scores in the PPI and non-PPI groups were 9 vs 7 points, respectively. Logistic regression analysis showed that long-term PPI therapy (odds ratio, 0.994; 95% confidence interval 0.990-0.999) was significantly associated with improved nutritional status. The presence or absence of PPI therapy is not associated with malnutrition in elderly hospitalized patients. Longer-term PPI therapy may improve nutritional status.