Co-morbidities with Nutritional and Micronutrient Status of Elderly People Attended at a Tertiary Medical Center in COVID-19 era

Author(s): Jannatara Shefa, Mohammad Ferdous Ur Rahaman, Maleeha Sheefa, Zahida Jabbar

Background: With increasing age, a regulatory function of the vital organs of the body decreases and develops or aggravates different co-morbidities; multiple socio-demographic factors. Health policy makers couldn’t find adequate evidence-based information on co-morbidities, nutrition and micronutrient status for the elderly population in current COVID-19 era in preparing for appropriate health, nutrition and social support guideline for the elderly in Bangladesh at present situation.

Objective: The present study attempted to assess the health, nutritional and micronutrient status of elderly people in a tertiary medical center in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Methods: It was a cross sectional descriptive study. The subjects were selected purposively. The study was conducted among 60+ elderly attending department of Internal Medicine, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU). Anthropometric data such as height and weight of the study subjects were collected by using standard techniques. Nutritional status was measured according to WHO guideline. Micronutrients were measured at Biochemistry lab, BSMMU.

Results: Among 79 participants with an average age of 64.06 years (SD 5.15), 53% were male and 47% female. Only 40% of elderly individuals had a BMI within the optimal range (18.5-24.9 kg/m²). Half of the participants had a normal BMI, 6% were moderately obese, and one individual was severely obese. Additionally, 20% were mildly undernourished, 3% had moderate undernutrition, and about 1% suffered from severe undernutrition. There was a significant association between gender and levels of Serum Ferritin, RBS, and Vitamin D (P-value < 0.05). However, no significant relationship was found between co-morbidities and nutritional status.

Conclusion: The study found that aging leads to decreased organ regulatory functions, resulting in co-morbidities and deficiencies in key micronutrients, particularly in the elderly population. Addressing these co-morbidities and micronutrient status is essential to improve the overall health condition of the elderly, especially after the COVID era.