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Predictive ability of malnutrition screening tools in enterally fed, mechanically ventilated patients with phase angle inference: A prospective observational study Cover

Predictive ability of malnutrition screening tools in enterally fed, mechanically ventilated patients with phase angle inference: A prospective observational study

Open Access
|Apr 2026

Figures & Tables

Fig. 2.

Structural equation model of relationship between observed variables (indicators) toward the PhA (dependent variable)

Admission and observation characteristics of the sample (N=709)

VariableCategoryn
Age, Mean (SD) 51.04 (12.57)
Gender, n (%)Male468 (65.9%)
Female241 (34.1%)

Admission Diagnosis, n (%)Sepsis216 (30.5%)
Respiratory176 (24.8%)
Trauma136 (19.2%)
Cardiovascular97 (13.7%)
Neurologic35 (4.9%)
Gastrointestinal22 (3.1%)
Other27 (3.8%)

Admission BMI (Kg/m2), n (%)Underweight (<18.5)11 (1.6%)
Normal (18.5−24.9)272 (38.4%)
Overweight (25−29.9)260 (36.7%)
Obese (>30)166 (23.4%)

Admission APACHE II score, Mean (SD) 18.22 (6.5)
Admission SOFA score, Mean (SD) 7.15 (3.0)

Length of ICU stay (Days), Median (IQR) 12 (10–19)
Range: 6–61 days

Duration of EN (Days), Median (IQR) 7 (4–10)
Range: 1–30 days

Duration of MV (Days), Median (IQR) 10 (5–13)
Range: 1–36 days

Mortality, n (%)Number of deaths (%)85 (12.0%)
Day of death, Median (IQR)Day 8th day (5th – 11th)

Predictive characteristics of malnutrition screening tools (N=709)

VariableSensitivitySpecificityPPVNPVAccuracy
NUTRIC score59.4%73.1%73.8%58.6%56.1%
MUST score77.6%93.3%93.6%76.6%70.4%
NRS-200276.8%90.7%91.3%75.5%66.1%

Machine-learning model to identify effective nutritional screening tools (N=709)

ModelsCCMAERMSERAE (%)RRSE (%)
Model 10.640.811.2166.7676.4
Model 20.540.871.3371.4184.39
Model 30.311.121.5092.2494.92
Model 40.690.701.1557.6072.76
Model 50.900.280.7123.4545.13
Model 60.910.290.6624.2742.03

Malnutrition screening using bioelectrical, physiological, and qualitative measures (N=709)

VariableCategoryValue
Assessment day of BIA since admission, Median (IQR) Day 9th (7th – 11th)

Phase Angle (PA) score>4 “Mild malnutrition”, n (%)312 (44.0%)
≤4 “Severe Malnutrition”, n (%)397 (56.0%)
PA mean (SD)3.27 (1.58)

Skeletal Muscle Mass (SMM) ‘lbs’, Median (IQR)DECREASE30 (24–34)
Body Fat Mass ‘lbs’, Median (IQR)NORMAL17 (6–24)
ECW/TBW Ratio, Median (IQR)Decreased0.4 (0.36–0.44)

Admission NUTRIC score0–4 “Low Risk”, n (%)389 (54.9%)
5–9 “High Risk”, n (%)320 (45.1%)
NUTRIC mean (SD)4.73 (2.0)

Admission MUST score, n (%)0 “Low Risk”380 (53.6%)
1 “Medium Risk”202 (28.5%)
≥2 “High Risk”127 (17.9%)

Admission NRS-2002, n (%)<3 Low Nutritional risk329 (46.4%)
≥3 High nutritional risk380 (53.6%)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.62838/jccm-2026-0010 | Journal eISSN: 2393-1817 | Journal ISSN: 2393-1809
Language: English
Page range: 232 - 242
Submitted on: May 26, 2025
Accepted on: Jan 29, 2026
Published on: Apr 30, 2026
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Publication frequency: 4 issues per year

© 2026 Mahmoud Al-Kalaldeh, Mohammad Abu Sabra, Omar Al-Kalaldeh, published by University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of Targu Mures
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.