Nutritional Assessment for the Elderly
The 10-item Eating Assessment Tool (also called EAT-10) is a self-administered questionnaire meant for dysphagia screening, having every item score from 0-4. The EAT-10 was developed specially to solve the clinical demands for quick, self-administered and initial score questionnaire for assessing the gravity of dysphagia symptoms. Also, it has been validated to have outstanding criterion-based validity, consistency and testretest reproducibility. First, EAT-10 is independently linked with the nutritional state once adjusting for age, setting and gender. Second, the EAT-10 score is independently related to nutritional status and activities of daily living (ADL) after adjusting for age and sex (Dutton, 2012).
The EAT-10 was linked to a nutritional condition in the elderly in need of long-lasting care once following the adjustment for age, background and gender. Contributors of adult malnutrition associated with the chronic ailment, injury, or social and ecological situations. These factors can similarly play a significant role in disease-related sarcopenia and etiology of nutrition, and cause sarcopenic dysphagia in elderly persons in need of lasting care. Thus, nutrition assessment is crucial for elderly people demanding long-term care with EAT-10 score ≥ 3, irrespective of the setting (Dutton, 2012).
According to Dutton (2012) studies, the advantage of the EAT-10 is that it is quick self-administered and simply scored questionnaire. There are multiple methods to screen and evaluate swallowing function, like food and water swallowing tests, cervical auscultation, pulse oximetry, videoendoscopic or videofluoroscopy assessment. Nevertheless, these swallowing tests may not be administered by the subject. These swallowing tests cannot be easily performed, in comparison with the EAT-10. The EAT-10 must be the first one to be performed. Then, if EAT-10 score gives ≥ 3, advance assessment of nutrition status, swallowing and ADL is conducted.
Reference
Dutton, M. (2012). Physical therapist assistant was examining review guide. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
